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Sacramento County Mom Thankful Son OK After Car Stolen With 5-Year-Old Inside

SACRAMENTO COUNTY (CBS13) — A Sacramento County mother is thankful her son is OK, after a thief allegedly stole her car with the child inside.

"My car gets taken, and my baby's gone, and I come around the corner and he's crying," Toni said.

She didn't know what to think. Just a few moments earlier, she had left her 5-year-old son, Alex, in the car with it running and unlocked while she ran into Merryhill Country School to pick up her other son.

"I feel bad. I feel like it's my fault, because it's a daily thing," Toni said. "I just go in for five minutes, and I got back out, and it's always right there.

But her car wasn't there on Monday. It had been stolen, with her son inside. She called 911 and frantically searched for him.

"I come around the corner, and he's crying around the corner, and I can't talk," she said.

The alleged thief dumped the car and her son about 30 yards away.

Alex says he wasn't scared, and told us very simply what happened.

"A guy got in the car, and he drove," he said.

"He said, 'Mommy, the man took your purse,' and I said, 'OK, are you OK?' and he said, 'I'm fine,' and we just started crying," Toni said.

Sacramento County Sheriff's deputies say it was likely a crime of opportunity.

"He was lucky enough to find a car that was running and thought he had a free car for a moment," said Lt. Tim Cotter.

Alex's dad was just grateful his son wasn't hurt.

"Stuff like this is going to happen around here, but you wouldn't think it's going to happen to you until it happens," said Michael Kimbrough.

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