79-year-old killed in violent Norco carjacking was about to meet family for dinner, daughter says

NORCO, Calif. (KABC) -- The family of a 79-year-old man dragged and killed in a brutal carjacking Monday says they were getting ready to meet him for dinner before the deadly turn of events.

The victim's daughter tells Eyewitness News that her dad was an Army Veteran who was in frail health. She said he had survived some close calls in his lifetime, from falling off a ladder to even walking away from a plane crash. She says it's hard knowing her dad died in such a violent way.

James Norman -- known as Jim to his family and friends -- was getting ready to go to dinner with his daughter and son-in-law when he made a quick stop at an ARCO station on Hidden Valley Parkway in Norco.

"So he probably went to clean his car, and he was probably waiting for us to call him and say, 'Hey dad, we're on our way now and we're going to come get you,'" said Norman's daughter, Nicole Lauritsen.

But instead of calling her dad, Lauritsen says she got a call from a Riverside County sheriff's deputy.

"'Your dad's been in an accident. Is there any way to track his phone?' And I said, 'No, but I can track his car,' and that's kind of where it led," Lauritsen said. "Nothing made sense at the time, I think, obviously because it was an investigation, they couldn't say anything."

But it wasn't an accident. Authorities said the 79-year-old had been vacuuming the back of his Chevy Trailblazer at the car wash, and the engine was still running. That's when investigators said 29-year-old Ryan Hewitt jumped into the driver's seat and took off -- with Norman still hanging out of the back door.

"He didn't have his hearing aids in, so I'm guessing he didn't hear with the vacuum on, and all of a sudden, the car is just backing up," Lauritsen said. "He was too old and frail to get out before the door slammed on him."

Investigators were able to locate Norman's vehicle at a Riverside apartment complex thanks to an AirTag Lauritsen had placed in her dad's car to keep track of him.

She's grateful police found the suspect and thankful to the strangers who stood by her father in his final moments.

"I just hope he went quickly and I'm grateful for the people -- and I hope to meet them -- that surrounded him and protected his body so he wasn't just out in the middle of the road," Lauritsen said.

A GoFundMe had been created to help cover the cost of a memorial service for Norman and some final medical bills.

Meanwhile, Hewitt is expected to appear in court for his arraignment on charges of second-degree murder and felony carjacking. He's being held on a $1 million bail.