A Toronto actor faced an unfortunate case of life imitating art Tuesday when he was the victim of a violent cellphone theft.
Jeff Hanson, who is currently in a play about random violent attacks, was walking home from a performance. He was on Bathurst St. just south of Dupont St. at about 11 p.m. when a car pulled up next to him.
The driver asked to borrow his phone to call a friend for directions. Immediately after Hanson leaned into the passenger window and handed him his iPhone, the man stepped on the gas.
“I had a fight-or-flight reaction,” recalled Hanson, who grabbed onto the inside of the car as the man sped off.
“He booted right up to 60 kilometres an hour and started bobbing and weaving through cars,” he said. “It was raining, so my boots were on the ground and I was basically skiing the cement.”
As the car travelled south on Bathurst St., at one point the driver swerved around another vehicle and into oncoming traffic, Hanson said.
“I was in utter disbelief that it was happening,” he said. “He was swearing and yelling, ‘Let go!’ and I said, ‘You’re going 60 to 70. If I let go, I could die.’ ”
After about a block and a half, the driver turned east onto Barton St., where Hanson said he began to speed up towards a parked car.
“I knew if I didn’t let go, he was going to pin me between (the parked car and his vehicle) and that could have been really bad,” said Hanson. “So I let go and started rolling.”
People rushed out of their cars or nearby homes to help, but the driver had already fled. Police are now seeking witnesses to the dragging incident and a white Dodge Charger with passenger-side damage.
The suspect is in his mid-30s, white with tan skin, six feet tall with short brown hair and a distinct British accent. He is also wanted for stealing two iPhones from two women in separate incidents on May 18.
“The victim is lucky to be alive,” said Det. Christopher Chilvers. “It’s incredible what this person did just to steal an iPhone.”
Hanson, 29, is recovering in hospital with a mild concussion and deep bruises and cuts to his face and chest. Despite complications caused by blood between his skull and brain, he’s expected to make a full recovery.
“I realize I was lucky. Everyone who saw the accident and has spoken to me here . . . is surprised that I’m doing as well as I am.”
He will not be able to rejoin the cast of thriller for at least several days. Hanson has worked as a professional actor for seven years and has performed with the Classical Theatre Project and .
His face took the brunt of the damage, with cuts requiring at least 20 stitches. Hanson said plastic surgeons have assured him his actor’s visage will be back to normal eventually.
“If not, you know, a few scars might make me look a little tougher,” he said with a laugh.
