The authorities announced that a woman arrested for kidnapping a two-year-old boy alleged that she had no idea the toddler was inside the car she stole over the weekend. Police arrested a 29-year-old woman in connection to the kidnapping of Jacob Jardine, a two-year-old boy, in Sunnyvale.
They arrested Luong Tammy Huynh on Sunday, 8:30 PM, as she returned to San Jose, ABC7 reported.
The police found the boy in a brown 2008 Buick Enclave, stolen at 3:52 AM while his mother was unloading groceries on the 500 block of North Mathilda Avenue. Police found the vehicle four miles from where it was last seen.
Stolen vehicle
The police said that according to Huyn, she pulled over a small parking lot on Oakmead Parkway to sleep. When she woke up, it was then that she learned of the presence of Jacob.
Huyn added that she walked away from the car, leaving Jacob in the backseat all day long. Although police said the boy looked healthy, authorities took the toddler to the hospital as a precaution.
In her statement, Huyn said that she was only trying to steal the vehicle. However, Sunnyvale Dept. of Public Safety Captain Craig Anderson is suspicious of her claim. The authorities wondered why Huyn hadn't left an anonymous tip about where the vehicle and the child were.
Huynh was placed under arrest on suspicion of kidnapping, child endangerment, and vehicle theft. She is now being held at Santa Clara County Main Jail.
When the boy was declared missing, the California Highway Patrol issued an Amber Alert for five counties: Santa Clara, San Mateo, San Francisco, Santa Cruz, and Alameda. On Sunday afternoon, air support from the San Jose Police Department also joined the search.
The toddler was in a stolen SUV taken on Sunday outside the Travel Inn in Sunnyvale. Melissa Jardine, the mother, said she was bringing groceries inside her hotel room. She said she left Jacob in the vehicle since he was sleeping. When Huynh stole the SUV, the baby was still in the backseat. Jacob's mother made a plea for help hours before the authorities found the baby.
The police said Huynh was staying with a friend at a hotel where Jacob's mother and their family stayed for the past week.
Anderson said there was no indication that Huyn knew Jacob or his mother.
Words of gratitude from the family
The family could not contain their happiness upon learning that Jacob had been found and was in good condition.
Jacob's aunt, Migdalia Torres, said that the family was "super excited" when authorities found the toddler. She said she could not wait to hug Jacob.
Shawna Thiel, Jacob's grandmother, cried tears of joy when she heard that her grandson was finally found. She expressed her gratitude to the police department, the California Highway Patrol, the news people, and "everybody out there that helped us find this baby."
Child of America, a nonprofit organization, estimates that around 2,300 children goes missing in the United States every day.
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