Bystanders bash carjacker

A group of bystanders in the US have foiled a would-be carjacker, pulling him from the vehicle and punching and kicking him before detaining him until police arrived.

The attempted robbery occurred outside a Mexican restaurant in San Diego on Monday afternoon, local TV station 10 News reports.

Twenty-one-year-old suspect Ismael Hernandez allegedly tried to steal a mother's red minivan as she drove with her daughter in a carpark.

But the accused didn't get far, slamming into a pole before being was set upon by a group of bystanders.

Aaron Leaf was at a nearby shop when he heard the commotion and went outside to film it on his phone.

"I see this guy in the backseat choking out the driver and there were a couple of other people in the window grabbing the keys from him," he said.

"I was trying to figure out what was happening and once I realized, I didn't feel sorry for the guy at all."

Mr Leaf's video shows the good Samaritans remove the keys from the van's ignition before pulling the young man from the car and beating him.

Hernandez eventually stops resisting and waits on the ground with a man standing over him until police arrive and arrest him.

Hernandez's brother Elais Velasquez said his sibling had struggled with drugs and alcohol and had only been released from rehab a few months ago.

"When I saw the video, he was so aggressive and he was not him … He was acting different," Mr Velasquez said.

The suspect's father said a relapse may explain his son's actions.

Hernandez has been charged with attempted carjacking, attempted kidnapping, and attempted auto theft.

Source: 10 News

Author: Martin Zavan, Approving editor: Lachlan Williams