A man and woman are behind bars after police said they attempted to steal a taxicab at gunpoint in Gainesville Thursday morning.
Gainesville Police Lt. Kevin Holbrook said the incident happened around 6:00 a.m. after the taxi driver had picked up the couple from a hotel in the city and driven them to a location off Dawsonville Highway near McEver Road. The two were identified as Abraham Santiago, age 31, and Ana Maria Calderilla-Linares, age 38, both of Gainesville.
"The driver did state that (Santiago) pulled a weapon, a firearm, on her," Holbrook said. "She was able to get out of the vehicle and run, calling for help."
Holbrook said police arrived moments later and arrested Santiago and Calderilla-Linares. He also said Santiago resisted arrest and that two stolen firearms were recovered from the scene.
A video posted to the Gainesville Police Department's social media page showed officers arresting Santiago. The video can be seen above this article.
"(Calderilla-Linares) was actually found to be in possession of narcotics at the jail, so she did get some additional charges for that," Holbrook said. "We're very fortunate that no officers, or anyone else, was injured during this altercation."
Both Santiago and Calderilla-Linares are being held in the Hall County Jail on a list of charges including hijacking, possession of methamphetamine and possession of a firearm during the commission of a crime.
