Carjacker who threatened drivers with syringe for lower amount sentenced

LOWER BUCKS COUNTY, PA — A 41-year-old man who threatened to inject drivers with a syringe if they did not return their vehicles will face up to 25 years in prison, authorities said.

Kevin O'Connell, of no known address, was sentenced Monday to up to 25 years in state prison for committing two burglaries and two carjackings in Bucks County, including one in which a elderly woman was hospitalized.

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In each of the carjackings, O'Connell threatened to inject the victims with a syringe, the Bucks County District Attorney's Office said.

On Monday, he appeared before Common Pleas Judge Jeffrey L. Finley and pleaded no contest to two counts each of theft of a motor vehicle, grand larceny, theft by unlawful taking, receiving stolen property and making terroristic threats, three counts of simple assault and one count each of aggravated assault and recklessly endangering another person.

O'Connell was also convicted Monday of committing two burglaries in 2022, in Tullytown Borough and Bristol Township. DNA evidence helped police identify O'Connell as the person who committed each of these crimes.

At sentencing, Finley told O'Connell he stole the victim's sense of security and made her afraid to live her daily life.

“You didn’t just steal their property, you stole their lives in a way,” he said.

In addition to the state prison sentence, O'Connell was ordered to have no contact with the victims, submit to a drug and alcohol evaluation, and pay the victims additional restitution of $30,000.

O'Connell was arrested in Philadelphia after committing a carjacking on the morning of August 19, 2022, at 200 Commerce Circle in Bristol Borough.

That day, police were dispatched to the scene and witnesses told them a man had stolen his 2007 Toyota Camry from an elderly woman.

The victim was in a medical clinic, slumped in a chair and bleeding from his arm and leg. She was taken by ambulance to hospital for treatment.

At the hospital, the victim told police she was returning to her car after an appointment at the medical clinic when a man came to her window and asked for a dollar for a drink.

When the woman refused, O'Connell threatened to inject her with a syringe, grabbed her keys and drove off in his car, knocking her to the ground. After her arrest, the victim identified Kevin O'Connell as the man who robbed her, authorities said.

As the investigation continued, police linked O'Connell to a carjacking that occurred on March 16, 2022, at the McDonald's at 7700 Bristol Pike in Bristol Township.

During this carjacking, O'Connell also threatened the victim with a syringe before leaving in his vehicle.

The car was recovered and Bristol Township police took several DNA swabs, which came back with a match for O'Connell.

In addition to the carjackings, O'Connell pleaded guilty Monday to burglary and related offenses for committing a burglary on May 27, 2022, in the borough of Tullytown.

In that burglary, he entered the garage of a home on Stonybrook Drive early in the morning and stole $5,000 in tools and household items.

He pleaded guilty in April to committing a burglary on March 27, 2022, in the Croydon section of Bristol Township.

During that burglary, he entered a home on Newport Road, stole $20,000 from a safe and took other electronics.