San Mateo carjacking suspect who allegedly struck victim in head arrested

(KRON) -- A man who is accused of striking a car owner in the head before stealing the vehicle from San Mateo was arrested Saturday, according to police.

San Mateo Police Department officers responded to the 100 block of East Third Avenue on a report of a carjacking. The victim told officers that he was sitting inside his car when a man came up and pulled him out of the vehicle. In the altercation, the victim was struck twice in the back of the head with what he believed was a firearm, police said.

The suspect, later identified as Maurice Powell, 53, of San Francisco, fled the scene in the victim’s vehicle, according to authorities.

A San Mateo County-wide “be on the lookout” was initiated for the suspect and stolen vehicle.

A short time later, the stolen vehicle was located north in San Bruno, and the San Bruno Police Department assisted with a traffic stop. A search of Powell uncovered a bag of psilocybin mushrooms, San Mateo PD said, but no firearm was found.

Powell received a citation for possession of a controlled substance and was arrested and booked into San Mateo County Jail for carjacking.