Salt Lake City Police are searching for a man who yanked a woman out of her van and drove off with her 3-year-old girl in the back seat.
The child was found unharmed a few miles away.
According to police, the woman was stopped in the left-turn lane on 2100 South near 700 East at about 1:30 p.m. Thursday when a man ran up to her car, opened her door and pulled her out. He drove off, heading west, with the 3-year-old girl still in the back seat.
Witnesses attempted to follow the van, but lost it in traffic.
About 30 minutes later, the child — who was crying and calling for her mother — was found near 900 S. West Temple by a man who took her to the Publik Coffee Roasters nearby. The police were called, and the child was reunited with her mother.
Police have identified a “person of interest” from surveillance footage at a business on the corner of 2100 South and 700 East. They’re asking for the public’s help to identify him and locate the stolen vehicle, a gray 2001 Honda Odyssey with Utah license plate W05 4VG.
Anyone with information is asked to contact police at (801) 799-3000.
