Stockton Child, 4, Escapes Carjacking
STOCKTON (CBS13) — A young boy is safe after getting out of a car during a suspected carjacking in Stockton's Park District on Monday.
The suspected thief is still on the loose, and the vehicle hasn't been located. It's described as a four-door 2001 Honda Civic with a license plate of 7EDX752.
There's not much 4-year-old Peyton can do on his own yet, including unbuckling his own seat belt. So his mother says she's shocked and proud that he knew to act quickly and bravely to get out of the stolen car.
Hahn Tran left her Honda Civic running while she ran up to her relatives' house to say goodbye. Her children were playing near the car, but it was Peyton who climbed inside. In a moment, an older Hispanic man jumped into the driver's seat and sped off, with family members running after.
Neighbor Lawrence Collins was cleaning out his car at the time.
"I'd seen a car come flying real fast, and another truck chasing him. He was going like 60, 70 miles per hour," he said.
Peyton was in the backseat, unbuckled. The 4-year-old decided to jump out of the car.
"He turned the corner so fast I thought the kid just fell out,"Collins said.
He rolled onto the sidewalk and family members picked him up.
"The little boy did get injured," said Stockton Police spokesman Joe Silva. "He jumped out of a moving vehicle, because he didn't know who the man was and fearing for his safety, he did what he thought was right and he did the right thing."
Tran says Peyton's injuries were minor, with scratched legs. When she asked why he jumped out of the car, Peyton said, "Because he wasn't you, Mommy."
