A Frisco man has been sentenced to 75 years in prison after stabbing a Lyft driver and stealing his car in what prosecutors said was an attempt to kidnap a 13-year-old child.
Antwain Karmen Williams, 20, pleaded guilty to first-degree felony aggravated robbery in Collin County, Texas. The sentence followed evidence that he had arranged the ride as part of a plan to obtain a vehicle.
Lyft driver suffered life-threatening injuries
The attack happened on December 16, 2024, at the Legends at Legacy apartment complex on Legacy Drive in Frisco. Police were called shortly before 5.45pm and found the driver with a deep wound to his neck and a severely injured hand.
The victim was taken to hospital by the Frisco Fire Department and survived after emergency treatment. Frisco police later said he had been able to tell officers that a passenger had stabbed him before taking his vehicle.
Investigators identified Williams using ride-share information supplied by Lyft. Police said he was also wanted on an outstanding warrant relating to an allegation of sexual performance by a child involving a 13-year-old.
Messages recovered from Williams’s phone indicated that he planned to steal a car and use it to kidnap the child, prosecutors said. He was later tracked in the stolen vehicle, which crashed into another car before he was arrested by Texas Department of Public Safety trooper Justin Diaz.
Frisco police said officers first spotted the vehicle shortly after 9pm near the junction of routes 423 and 380. The driver failed to stop, prompting a pursuit, and Williams was eventually detained after a second chase and a foot pursuit involving several law enforcement agencies.
During the sentencing proceedings, jurors heard that Williams had given investigators conflicting accounts of the attack. Prosecutors also presented digital evidence, including a photograph showing him holding the stolen keys alongside messages about getting a car.
Further evidence concerned alleged sexual communications with a 14-year-old, unauthorised recordings involving two former girlfriends who were aged 16 and 17 at the time, and a threat to harm another person after his release.
Collin County District Attorney Greg Willis said the sentence reflected the seriousness of an attack that left the driver close to death and was linked to an alleged plan to abduct a child.
Judge Jim Pruitt presided over the case. The injured driver has not been publicly identified.
