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Rock County man victim of alleged carjacking

By
Lori Sorenson

Local law enforcement and South Dakota officials responded to what was reported as a car jacking Sunday in rural Rock County.
According to the Rock County Sheriff’s Office, officers were called to the residence of 64-year-old Wayne Hartz around 11 a.m. Sunday, Aug. 28, regarding an assault and vehicle theft.
When law enforcement arrived, Hartz had cuts and his face was covered in blood. He said he’d been assaulted by his hired help, Gregory Snyder, 29, who is from North Carolina.
Hartz told officers that Snyder had been acting strangely and then took off running down the driveway at 544 111th Street.
Hartz reportedly got into his vehicle and went after Snyder, who entered the vehicle and picked up a crescent wrench and started hitting Hartz with it.
Hartz eventually was able to get out of the vehicle and Snyder took off with it.
The South Dakota Highway Patrol contacted the Rock County Sheriff’s Office later in the day and indicated that they had made contact with Snyder as he had rolled the vehicle into a waterway near Alexandria, South Dakota.
The 2007 Dodge Ram Pickup appears to have been totaled in the rollover.
Snyder has been charged in South Dakota with possession of stolen property and revoked driver’s license.
Charges are still pending in Minnesota, and he remains in custody in South Dakota.
Snyder’s last known address was a North Carolina prison. He was reportedly released on Aug. 26 and picked up by Hartz.
Hartz was taken by ambulance to Sanford Luverne where he was treated for lacerations to the back of his head and his nose.

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