Woman pulled 3-year-old child from SUV moments before carjackers stole it in St. Paul
A photo from deputies shows the recovered vehicle. (Ramsey County Sheriff's Office / Supplied)
ST. PAUL, Minn. (FOX 9) - St. Paul Police hope a scary situation on Tuesday morning can serve as a reminder to the community to be aware of your surroundings and trust your intuition. Law enforcement says a woman was robbed at gun point and her car was stolen, with barely enough time for her 3-year-old child to get out.
"It’s incredibly frightening," St. Paul Police PIO Steve Linders said. "It’s scary for her."
Woman pulled 3-year-old child from SUV moments before carjackers stole it in St. Paul
St. Paul Police hope a scary situation on Tuesday morning can serve as a reminder to the community to be aware of your surroundings and trust your intuition. Law enforcement says a woman was robbed at gun point and her car was stolen, with barely enough time for her 3-year-old child to get out.
Just before 10 a.m., two women were targeted by armed car robbers near Billy’s On Grand Avenue. FOX 9 spoke to the first target who told us she’d just parked her car when another car pulled up and a man wearing a ski mask jumped out. She ran away from him and up the street, locking her car behind her and alerting the police. Only minutes later, police say another woman was targeted. This time the woman was likely followed from the same location back to her home.
"The vehicle pulled up, one of the men jumped out, pointed a gun at her, and said give me your wallet, give me your keys," Linders said. The woman’s three-year-old child was in the car at the time.
"It’s heartbreaking and incredibly concerning, thankfully the child’s mother was able to get the child out of the car before this became worse," Linders said.
Ramsey County Sheriff’s deputies later recovered the vehicle, taking three people into custody throughout the day.
"A 20-year-old man, he’s currently in custody, 17-year-old male juvenile is in custody, and a 14-year-old male," Linders said.
Law enforcement believes the suspects are involved in other carjacking’s in the metro. It’s a crime that’s spread out in recent months. Across the river in Minneapolis from last Thursday to this Monday police reported 9 carjacking’s over the holiday weekend – and in the last 24 hours, 5 cars were stolen in Golden Valley, after some were left idle.
"We have seen an increase lately and it’s incredibly disappointing and frightening," Linders finished.