A bizarre and troubling weekend crime scene in Highland Park has resulted in the arrest of a young mother, days after a thief fled a botched car burglary and left a toddler and a dog behind in a stranger’s vehicle.
However, when the victim looked inside his vehicle, he realized the thief had left something behind: a toddler and a dog.
Officers scoured the neighborhood for the suspect but couldn't find him. The child, a boy with curly brown hair and a light gray sweater, sat unclaimed. For days, no frantic parent or relative called the station to report him missing. It is unclear the mother's relationship to the alleged thief.
A spokesperson for the Department of Children and Family Services and the LAPD did not immediately respond to a request for comment from NTD News seeking further details on the case.
Because efforts to identify the boy through standard channels failed, social workers from the Department of Children and Family Services (DCFS) took him into custody. Police were forced to ask the public for help.
That appeal to the public worked. Detectives credited "assistance from the community" with helping them finally identify the child and locate his biological parents.
The child will remain under the supervision of the DCFS until social workers can find a safe environment for him, police said in their latest update.
Authorities are also still trying to figure out who owns the dog found sitting with the boy. The dog appeared to know the child but had no license tag or microchip to scan. It is currently being cared for by Los Angeles County Animal Services.