Father panics as SUV is stolen

A trip to return a DVD rental left a Las Vegas father with the worry of a lifetime Thursday morning when a woman stole the vehicle carrying his infant son.

The man, who was not identified by police, stopped in front of the Albertson's at 7350 S. Rainbow Blvd. to return a movie to a storefront kiosk about 10:20 a.m. He left his son in the sport-utility vehicle with the engine running, Las Vegas police said.

He was 10 to 15 feet from the vehicle when a woman hopped behind the wheel and sped away, officer Bill Cassell said.

A Salvation Army bell ringer, who asked to be identified only as Fitzgerald, saw the vehicle zip by with the father running along the driver's side.

"He was yelling, 'My baby's in there.' He was beating on the glass," he said.

Witnesses said he was dragged with the vehicle until it reached the parking lot exit at Warm Springs Road. He fell to the ground and rolled several times while the vehicle escaped to the east, the witnesses said.

Shaken and panicked, the father called police on his cell phone. At one point he jumped in a car with a woman and they tried to catch up to the stolen vehicle but returned empty-handed, the witnesses said.

Tina Liaos, who works at Post Net in the shopping center, said the father couldn't stop pacing as he waited for updates from police about his 4-month-old boy.

"He was white, obviously sick from worry," she said of the man, who appeared to be in his mid-20s and wore blue jeans and a sweater.

Another employee who works in the shopping center said the father cried and was visibly distraught.

"He was crazy," the worker said. "He was pacing. I thought he was going to throw up."

Ten minutes later, someone reported an abandoned SUV with a child in the back seat at an industrial center on the 7100 block of Lindell Drive, about two miles away, Cassell said.

Officers made the connection and gave the father the good news, he said. Police also found a woman near the vehicle and arrested her.

Jennifer Nichole Spencer, 22, was booked into the Clark County Detention Center on kidnapping, child endangerment and auto theft charges. She was being held without bail.

The incident should serve as a reminder to parents never to leave their children in an unlocked car with the engine running, even for a short time, Cassell said.

"When you're talking about walking 10 feet to do something, there are probably a lot of people who would do that. I'm not saying it's correct," Cassell said.

Liaos said she can't keep track of all the people she sees leaving their cars running while they go into a store. Drivers shouldn't do it considering Las Vegas' high rate of auto theft, and especially not with a child in the car.

"I'm just glad it ended happy," Liaos said. "The baby's safe. That's something to be thankful for."

Contact reporter Brian Haynes at bhaynes@reviewjournal.com or (702) 383-0281.