PEMBROKE PARK, FLA. (WSVN) - Broward Sheriff’s Office deputies have released surveillance video of a man they said stole a car with a child inside of it.
Deputies found the 4-year-old boy safe inside the car not long after it was stolen in Pembroke Park.
According to detectives, the incident began when a woman made a stop at a Marathon gas station, Wednesday morning, near Hallandale Beach Boulevard and Southwest 56th Avenue.
“She left her 4-year-old child in the car, ran inside, by the time she came out, someone had jumped into the car and had driven away with her child in the back,” said BSO spokesperson Keyla Concepcion.
A clerk said he saw the mother frantically run back inside the gas station and call 911.
Officers from several agencies responded and eventually found the child and car less than a mile away at a warehouse near Southwest 28th Street and 51st Terrace.
“We saw the cops all over the place looking for someone,” said a witness.
Detectives rushed to the parking lot where the car was found.
“BSO runs by the door. I said, ‘What the heck is going on?'” said another witness in the area.
A BSO sergeant was able to narrow down the search area after he discovered the woman left her iPhone in the vehicle, allowing them to track it with the Find My iPhone feature.
“This is the best possible outcome that we could’ve hoped for for a situation like this,” Concepcion said. “It was thanks to the quick actions of our sergeant.”
“BSO did a great job,” added the mother. “They’ll find him. I’m confident.”
Investigators don’t believe the thief intended to take the child.
“That would be the assumption: that the suspect would have taken the car and maybe not known there was a child inside,” Concepcion said.
Now, detectives are searching for the person caught on camera around a nearby Home Depot.
Employees said they spotted the man inside the store, Tuesday.
If you recognize the suspect, call Broward County Crime Stoppers at 954-493-TIPS. Remember, you can always remain anonymous, and you may be eligible for a $3,000 reward.
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