Mother clings to door as teen steals SUV with 8-year-old inside, Pennsylvania cops say
A young child’s quick thinking and a mother’s fast reaction led to a daring escape from a speeding stolen vehicle, Pennsylvania police said.
The incident began when a woman left her 8-year-old in her parked and running SUV while she stopped at a convenience store in eastern Pennsylvania, according to an April 23 news release from the Palmer Township Police Department.
While inside, she saw an individual wearing a mask get into the driver’s side of her SUV and watched as it began to exit the parking lot, police said.
The woman then ran from the store and rushed toward the fleeing vehicle, grabbing onto the driver’s door handle, police said.
While the SUV was peeling away, the woman’s daughter, who was in the backseat and locked inside, managed to unlock her door and leap from the vehicle, according to the release.
The woman “let go of the car handle and due to the high rated speed of her vehicle as it fled the parking lot, struck her head on the pavement,” police said.
Police then used the woman’s cellphone — which was still inside the stolen vehicle — to pinpoint the SUV’s location.
Officers later found the vehicle at a nearby intersection, and after they switched on their sirens and lights, a chase ensued, police said.
The stolen SUV eventually crashed and the suspect, a 16-year-old boy, was taken into custody, according to the release. The woman’s bank card was found in his pocket, police said.
It was also discovered that the boy had been involved in a stolen vehicle chase the previous day, police said.
The teen, a resident of Easton, faces robbery, reckless endangerment and unlawful restraint charges, among others, according to LehighValleyLive.com, citing the Northampton County district attorney.
The woman was treated for her injuries at a hospital.
Palmer Township is about 75 miles west of New York City.
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