Nine-month-old girl found safe 16 hours after being kidnapped by carjacker in father’s Lexus
Police in Alabama have safely located the nine-month-old girl who was kidnapped when a carjacker stole the family SUV on Monday evening.
Just before 7pm local time in Parrish, Alabama, Harlow Darby Freeman was kidnapped from a residence on Crest Avenue. The infant was in her car seat in the back of an SUV when a carjacker stole the car.
Melinda Hutchinson, the aunt of Harlow, told reporters that her niece was in the vehicle with her father when he ran inside to a friend’s house. He was gone for a very short amount of time before the SUV was stolen.
The Alabama Law Enforcement Agency issued an Amber Alert for Harlow around 9.40pm on Monday believing the infant to be in danger.
More than 12 hours later, on Tuesday, authorities safely located the nine-month-old.
“The child has been found safe,” Parrish Police Department wrote on Facebook.
Authorities believe the father’s car was stolen and asked people to look out for a white 2009 Lexus RX350 with damage on the rear passenger side that appears to be tapped with clear tape.
Harlow’s family offered $5,000 for information leading to her safe return.
“I hope whoever has her, I mean, I hope they’re taking care of her,” Ms Hutchison told CBS 42. “I mean, she’s nine months old and, you know, I just know that sometimes money talks. And, so, maybe if somebody is offered money and they know something, they will say something.”
Parrish police officer Danny Woodard told reporters in a brief news conference that all resources at the local, state and federal level were being utilised in the search for the missing child.
“The main priority at this time is to locate the child,” Mr Woodard said.
Police said they located the missing child around 11.15am local time on Tuesday. They did not provide details about how Harlow was found or what condition she was in.
