California

Caught on Camera: Girls Jump From Car During Auto Thief's Getaway

Police were searching for a 24-year-old Highland man in connection with the crime

A 10-year-old girl and her 2-year-old sister left alone in their family's car escaped from the moving vehicle Sunday as a thief climbed inside and made his getaway from a Southern California parking lot.

The mother had left her daughters inside the car at a 7-Eleven gas station at 1161 Lugonia Avenue Sunday afternoon while she went inside to pay, according to a Redlands Police Department news release.

Surveillance video showed a man getting into the car, which the mother had left with the motor running. As the mother ran toward the car, the man began to drive off. The passenger side door opened and the two girls tumbled out of the car while still in the parking lot.

The girls suffered minor scrapes.

The 2002 Acura TL, with California license plate 4UWT026, was last seen on San Bernardino Avenue entering the westbound 210 Freeway, police said.

The suspect, who police say had made a purchase at the store prior to the car theft, was identified by investigators as 24-year-old Cory Michael Ahumada of Highland.

Police released the surveillance video in hopes the public can help find him.

Anyone with information regarding the incident or Ahumada's whereabouts was asked to call Redlands Det. Mike Merriman at 909-389-6675.

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