SHELBY TOWNSHIP, Mich. – A 29-year-old man from Florida was extradited to Michigan in connection with a carjacking outside a Lifetime Fitness in Shelby Township.
Xavier Gardner was charged with 12 felonies, including carjacking, armed robbery, torture, first-degree home invasion, unlawful imprisonment, felony firearm and more.
Recommended Videos
The charges stem from the alleged abduction of a 24-year-old man on Oct. 23. Police said he was taken by six armed men wearing ski masks from the Lifetime Fitness on Lakeside Boulevard parking lot. The victim was reportedly tied him up in his own truck and tortured before the men went to the victim’s house.
When police arrived at the residence, the suspect fled. One suspect was arrested that day after a police chase in Sterling Heights ended in a crash. The victim was still tied up in the truck at the time.
Background: Police find man tied up in crashed truck after Sterling Heights chase
Gardner is the fifth man from Florida charged in the kidnapping and carjacking. Angel Antonio Andujar-Ruiz, 38, was charged in October, just days after the incident. Angel Pantoja, 22, was charged in January. Renado Coleman, 38, was charged in February. Romeo Osorio, 23, was charged on March 2.
Andujar-Ruiz was the only one apprehended in Michigan. The four others were extradited from Florida.
Gardner’s bond was set at $5 million, cash only. He is expected to return to court for a probable cause hearing on March 11. If convicted, Gardner faces the possibility of life in prison.
Authorities said one suspect remains at large.
