Teen charged with stealing car with children still inside at Zion gas station
ZION, Ill. (CBS) -- Video shows two little boys being dropped off at a gas station in Zion Sunday night – by the thief who stole the car in which they had been riding.
A 15-year-old boy was arrested that same night and charged with stealing the car with the children inside. Police said after the teen dropped the boys off, he crashed into an unmarked police car.
Fortunately, as CBS 2's Marybel González reported, the little boys are safe. Police picked them up minutes after they were dropped off.
But the store clerk working Sunday night who first came across the children said they were shaking visibly and crying.
Zion police said shortly after 9 p.m., officers responded to the Murphy USA gas station on Illinois Route 173, or Rosencrans Road, where someone had stolen a car that still had the keys in the ignition. The two boys – ages 7 and 4 – in the vehicle.
Video shows the white sport-utility vehicle pull into the gas station along the Kenosha Road entrance – initially hitting the street curve.
The same car stops in front of the gas station and the boys get out of the back seat before the SUV turns around and leaves.
The boys walk around the parking lot and onto the street before running back to the store. That was where the clerk came out and called police.
It was unclear where the car was stolen from. We also do not know how long the kids were inside the car before they were dropped off.
At 9:50 p.m., about an hour after the video, officers found the stolen car in the 2900 block of 24th Street – about 10 miles away from the gas station.
Police said the 15-year-old struck an unmarked detective's car – causing significant damage. Police were eventually able to arrest the teen.
We are told the juvenile is in custody and facing multiple charges – including possession of a stolen vehicle and child endangerment.
No one was injured during this incident.