Merriam police seek thief who took and then abandoned car with 2-year-old inside

A man stole an idling car with a 2-year-old inside as a couple was moving into a Merriam apartment early Tuesday.

Police found the car nearby about seven minutes later. The child was unharmed, said Merriam Police Chief Michael Daniels.

Police received a call about the car theft about 3:25 a.m. at the Georgetown Apartments in the 7200 block of Eby Drive.

The child’s mother told police that she and her boyfriend were moving into an apartment at the time of the theft. She said she had pulled into a parking place a few spaces from where her boyfriend had parked a van carrying their property, Daniels said.

The woman told police she got out of her silver Toyota Camry and walked to talk to her boyfriend. She left the car running.

As she was headed to the van, a man passed her headed the other way. When she turned around, she saw her car being driven away with the child inside, Daniels said.

A black Ford F-150 pickup drove out of the parking lot at the same time.

Merriam police alerted other agencies about the car theft and said there was a child inside the Camry. A Lenexa officer found the car abandoned near West 67th Street and Interstate 35 about seven minutes later. The car was still running with the child inside, unharmed.

Police were looking for the car thief, who is believed to be in his early to middle 20s. A complete description was not available. Police also were looking for the pickup to determine whether it was involved in the theft.

Anyone with information about the theft is asked to call the Tips Hotline at 816-474-TIPS (8477).

This story was originally published February 3, 2015 at 8:47 AM with the headline "Merriam police seek thief who took and then abandoned car with 2-year-old inside."