Witnesses: Man steals car from repossession lot in McKeesport, pulls employee from vehicle

MCKEESPORT, Pa. — A scary scene at a repo lot Friday afternoon in McKeesport.

Workers say a man showed up intent on getting his car back or die trying.

The entire ordeal was caught on surveillance video obtained exclusively by Channel 11.

Melanie Pierce has worked at the business, American Recovery Corporation, for 19 years. She was sitting in a blue 2010 Mustang around 2 p.m. when its owner climbed the fence and came for the car.

Surveillance video shows Melanie getting into a scuffle with the man.

“I’m hitting the lock button. He’s unlocking it with the remote in his hands,” she said. “He pulled me out of the vehicle, slammed me on the ground.”

Once he was in the car, he tried to escape the lot.

Video shows him backing up, nearly hitting workers in the lot. Cellphone video showed the frantic scene. The car then rams repeatedly into a fence before finally breaking through.

“He actually almost got hit by a (PRT) bus because there was a bus coming down this street,” she said. “He said he’s willing to die for his car. I mean, it’s a Mustang, a 12-year-old car. I’m not willing to die for a car. I have a kid at home.”

Melanie suffered a bump to the head but no more. We reached out to police to find out the status of that driver but have not heard back. Stick with us for more information.

This is a developing story. Check back for updates as more information becomes available.

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