Stolen PT Cruiser Found Abandoned in Shade With Toddler Sleeping in Backseat

The girl's grandmother went back inside a house "for just a minute" and returned to find the vehicle missing

A 1-year-old girl was found sleeping in the backseat of a vehicle that was abandoned in the shade under a tree after it was stolen Wednesday from in front of a San Bernardino home.

The purple Chrysler PT Cruiser was stolen in the 1500 block of West 7th Street when the child's grandmother went back inside her house, leaving the girl in the backseat. The woman said she left the vehicle for "just a minute" to grab milk from inside the house.

"I looked outside, the car was gone," she said.

The report prompted a search for the PT Cruiser that involved officers from throughout the city. A school police officer found the vehicle 15 minutes later just a few blocks away -- parked under the shade of a tree with the toddler sleeping in the backseat.

"Everybody dropped everything. Units came from all over the city," said Lt. Rich Lawhead, of the San Bernardino Police Department. "She did not wake up until fire personnel actually removed her from the vehicle. She probably doesn't even know anything happened, except she got hugged by a fireman."

It's likely the thief intended to draw attention to the vehicle after noticing the child in the backseat, Lawhead said.

"Usually, you don't leave a car unattended facing the wrong way in traffic in a shady spot with the wipers on if you don't want to draw attention to it," said Lawhead.

The thief also might have left the vehicle's air conditioning on during a day when temperatures climbed into the 90s, Lawhead said.

The child appeared in "good condition" after she was examined by medical personnel, according to police. Fire-rescue personnel provided the girl with something to drink and held her until the grandmother arrived.

"I'm happy," the child's grandmother said after she was reunited with the girl. "I didn't think anyone could do something like that."

The person who stole the vehicle has not been located. He was described by police as a "heavy set" shirtless man with a backpack and black pants.
 

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