Ukrainian Village family was prepared when faced with carjacker
CHICAGO (CBS) - A Chicago dad had to sprint from his SUV with his young daughter after a man with a gun demanded he get out.
The carjacking was something the family had planned for.
Chris and Josselyn Kula said they knew crime comes with living in a city so they tried to always stay vigilant. Years ago, that included making a plan if they were ever carjacked, which they never thought that would actually happen.
But this last Tuesday, their fears came true.
"I threw my hands up and said, 'You can have the car, I need to get my daughter out of the car first,'" said Chris, recalling the scariest 30 seconds of his life.
A man with a gun demanded his car but his two-year-old daughter was inside. Chris said the offender threated to shoot him and pointed the gun at both him and his daughter.
"So, I dove into the backseat and I'm struggling to get the car seat straps undone and he's yelling at me the whole time," Chris said.
The Ukrainian Village dad made a run for it with his toddler in hand. That was when Josselyn opened their front door.
"[Chris was] screaming at me to call 911 and I just started freaking out, thinking, 'Oh my god it happened. It happened. What we've been talking about and fearing forever just happened to us.'" she said.
The father and daughter were unharmed but the SUV was gone. Police tracked it down several hours later with the seat belt that fastens the car seat burned off.
"I think I'm just in disbelief," said Josselyn, though the couple was not surprised.
They had planned for this exact situation when carjackings in Chicago began to spike a few years ago. They agreed to give up their car if carjacked, but not to leave the vehicle without their little ones.
"When we had a kid, we knew that we at least had to think ahead and we thought we were being paranoid," said Chris.
Now they're left considering a possible move from the city they've called home for more than a decade. They're angry that their story isn't unusual anymore given the pervasive carjackings.
"I want the leaders of our city to know how this is impacting residents, long-time residents, families," said Josselyn, a mom of two.
Her husband added, "Chicago's always had its problems. Every big city has it's problems. But never in my experience has it been this bad."
"I'm of the opinion that on this leadership's watch - from the aldermen, to the mayor, to everybody else - they're going to squander one of the greatest cities in the country," he said.
The carjacking happened in broad daylight around 4 p.m. on Tuesday. The suspect hasn't been caught.