3-year-old found in stolen minivan following bizarre carjacking

Minneapolis police say multiple law enforcement agencies teamed up to find a child inside of a stolen minivan.

At 2:30 p.m. Tuesday, bystanders told police the driver of a vehicle involved in a crash stole the minivan of a man who had stopped to help in a residential area of north Minneapolis.

A 3-year-old boy was still inside the minivan.

Minneapolis police spokesperson John Elder said investigators tracked the signal from the minivan driver’s cellphone still inside the van. Police found the child about 6 miles away in less than an hour.

Create a More Connected Minnesota

MPR News is your trusted resource for the news you need. With your support, MPR News brings accessible, courageous journalism and authentic conversation to everyone - free of paywalls and barriers. Your gift makes a difference.

The suspect apparently ditched the vehicle.

"We deal with crashes every day of the year and this is first time in my career I've heard of this happening, but it certainly strikes a chord with everyone involved. You know, most of our officers are mothers or fathers," Elder said.

Elder said the boy suffered minor injuries likely from erratic driving.

Agencies were preparing to issue an Amber Alert but found the boy before they could do that, the police spokesperson said.

The suspect is still being sought.