Authorities are looking for a man accused of stealing a car in Cleveland with two children inside and then using the vehicle to go a crime spree with three other men in Willoughby.
According to a police report, on Nov. 18, an unknown man stole a 2006 silver BMW X5 from the area of East 116th Street and Continental Avenue in Cleveland. The car had been left running with a 9-year-old girl and a 4-month-old boy inside. The report states the car was left running while their mother went into a nearby store.
The suspect climbed into the SUV and drove off with both children inside. The girl jumped out of the car when it slowed down. Police said the infant was later found on the front porch of a house several blocks from where the car was taken.
On Nov. 21, at around 5 p.m., Willoughby police were notified about four men who were attempting to use a fraudulent credit card at a department store. When the card was declined the four men left the store in a silver SUV matching the description of the BMW taken out of Cleveland.
Several minutes later police received a 911 call from a woman who said a man stole her purse in the parking lot of Giant Eagle. Witnesses said the man jumped into a silver SUV and the vehicle was last seen heading towards a parking lot on Euclid Avenue.
When authorities arrived, they spotted four men getting into the BMW at GameStop near the Target parking lot. When the BMW tried to flee the scene it struck another vehicle that was attempting to park in a nearby space.
Police said the suspects pulled out off the parking lot and drove southbound on Beidler Road, turned onto Euclid Avenue and then fled back into Cleveland.
Watch dash cam video from the incident below:
Anyone with information regarding the incident is asked to contact Willoughby Police Detective Burrington at 440-953-4210.
