Shocking doorbell footage shows the moment neighbors rush to the aid of a Seattle dog walker after she was dragged to her death by an inmate during a carjacking.
Ruth Dalton, 80, was brutally attacked by Jahmed Haynes, 48, just before 10 a.m. Tuesday near Martin Luther King Jr. Way East and Harrison Street in the Madison Valley neighborhood.
At the time of the violent attack, Dalton, who founded her dog-walking business Grandma’s Critter Care 35 years ago, had several dogs in her car after she had just walked them in the park.
There, Haynes, who has eight prior felonies and a history of mental health issues, pushed the elderly woman in the passenger seat out of the car and ran her over before driving away in her own vehicle.
On Wednesday, SWAT arrested Haynes at his home and found a bloody knife and keys to Dalton’s car, police said. Just five miles away, officers found the lifeless body of her dog Prince and her vehicle.
According to police, Haynes was not satisfied with Dalton’s murder and then tortured her beloved dog to death.
Just before 10 a.m. Tuesday, Ruth Dalton, 80, (pictured) was brutally attacked during a carjacking by Jahmed Haynes, 48, in Seattle’s Madison Valley neighborhood
Haynes (pictured) pushed Dalton into the passenger seat, out of the car and ran her over before driving away in her vehicle and fleeing the scene.
Terrifying footage showed a group of brave neighbours rushing outside to help the grandmother in her final moments.
We hear a woman screaming, “Oh my God!” as she runs out of her house, with a man close behind her.
Then a child steps out onto the porch as the woman screams at him to get back inside. She screams, ‘Close the door! Close the door!’
John Ayala, another neighbor, was also seen running toward Dalton as he tried to save her life.
“I heard two very loud screams,” Ayala said. KING 5.
“When I got to her, she was still breathing. I did what I could to revive her, but it was just too far,” he added.
Another man ran to help the woman and tried to stop Haynes by swinging a baton against the car window.
Dalton, who started her dog-walking business, Grandma’s Critter Care, 35 years ago, had several dogs in her car after walking them at a park. (Pictured: an undated photo of her dog-walking business)
SWAT arrested Haynes at his home and found a bloody knife and keys to Dalton’s car. Just five miles away, officers found the lifeless body of her dog Prince and her vehicle
The day after the horrific crime, Dalton’s granddaughter Melanie Roberts thanked Ayala for trying to save her loved one.
Her heartbroken granddaughter, Melanie Roberts, said Dalton had such a love for animals, including Prince (pictured)
“It’s a comfort to know that there was someone there who cared about her, even if it was a stranger,” Roberts said.
Roberts said her grandmother loved animals immensely, including her dog Prince.
“Her dog passed away the same day she did. They’re together and I’m thankful for that,” she said.
Her granddaughter was grieving and created a Facebook page in memory of her late grandmother.
She explained that Dalton started her dog walking business in 1989 to raise money so Roberts could attend a private Christian school.
Roberts explained that Dalton started her dog walking business in 1989 to raise money to attend a private Christian school. (Pictured: Dalton and her granddaughter Roberts)
“She called it Grandma’s Critter Care because she always said, ‘Well, I’m Melanie’s grandma… and I take care of all the critters,’” she wrote.
‘And she did in the beginning… it wasn’t just dogs and cats! There were birds, reptiles, and even a few ferrets!’
Dalton was also the “proud” great-grandmother of Roberts’ daughter Emily.
“She visited us every day in the hospital for six weeks while Emily was in the neonatal intensive care unit,” Roberts said.
A memorial has been erected at a tree near the crime scene, wrapped in beautiful messages from grieving friends, family and community members.
Dalton (pictured) was also a “proud great-grandmother” of Roberts’ daughter Emily
A memorial has been erected at a tree near the scene of the accident, wrapped in beautiful messages from grieving friends, family and residents in the community
“In January of 1997, she walked into my flower studio. That unconditional love that dogs give, that was Ruth,” Nisha Klein told the outlet.
Pam Newcomer didn’t even know Dalton, but still wanted to pay her last respects.
“I was so moved by it that I wanted to lay flowers for her,” she said.
Haynes was previously convicted of vehicular manslaughter in a 1993 Seattle crash, Fox 13 reported.
He remains in custody and is expected to make his first court appearance soon.
Roberts wrote: ‘Eight prior convictions for serious crimes… he should never have been on the streets.’