Car thief finds 4-year-old in backseat, returns to scene to scold mother

close

Video

Fox News Flash top headlines for January 19

Fox News Flash top headlines are here. Check out what's clicking on Foxnews.com.

An Oregon carjacker allegedly swiped an idling SUV, drove down the street and discovered a 4-year-old inside – so he turned around, drove back to the scene and scolded the mother for leaving her child unattended.

The mother left her son in a running vehicle before going into a butcher shop in Beaverton at 9:10 a.m. Saturday, according to Beaverton Police spokesman Matt Henderson.

The mom was inside for barely a minute when police said she and the clerk saw a man hop into her idling vehicle and speed off. He drove about a half a block before allegedly turning around.

CALIFORNIA DRIVER ARRESTED WITH 'IT' MASK, AR-15

When he returned to the store, police said he scolded the mother for leaving a young child unattended in the running vehicle and demanded she remove her son from the SUV.

After she did, police said he took off again.

Authorities recovered the stolen vehicle later in the day about 10 miles away in Portland, but the suspect remains at large.

Henderson said the suspect was a White male adult, in his 20s or 30s with dark brown or black braided hair. He was wearing "a multicolored COVID-style mask."

There were no external security cameras in the parking lot, but the mother and a clerk got a glimpse of the carjacking, he said.

 The 4-year-old and the mother were not hurt.

"But it was a traumatic incident, I’m sure," Henderson said.

The investigation is ongoing.

CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP

The unidentified woman told Fox 12 Oregon that she would "never" leave her child in a running vehicle again.

"As moms we get really busy and we think we’re just running in for a second and this is just a perfect example of just letting our guards down and how terribly it could have ended," she told the station.