CINCINNATI -- It was Christmas Eve when men beat 87-year-old Tom Evans and stole his car.
Evans was driving along Lincoln Avenue in Walnut Hills when a man flagged him down, seemingly needing assistance. He stopped and got out of the car to help, according to Evans' son, Danny.
"The guy showed him he had a pistol, and dad told him, 'You're going to have to use it, you're not getting the wallet,'" Danny Evans said.
One of the men then beat Tom Evans with the gun while someone else climbed into the car, according to police.
"They're cowards, worse than an animal," Danny Evans said.
The two men got away with the car. Tom Evans did manage to keep his wallet, though he had to be stitched and stapled in five different places.
Evans walked toward the interstate ramp on Martin Luther King Drive, where someone passing by saw him and called for help.
He's still in the hospital. Evans' family said his recovery process is just beginning.
"Physically, he's going to recover, but they took his quality of life ... right now he has traumatic brain injury," Danny Evans said.
The elder Evans will need cognitive therapy and speech therapy.
The family is offering a $5,000 reward for information that could lead to a conviction. Police are still looking for Evans' car, a white 2003 Toyota Avalon with Ohio license plate FMW6678. They asked anyone with information to call Crime Stoppers at 513-352-3040.
