Libertyville pregnant mom recovering after run over trying to stop car theft with child inside
Sheriff's detectives are looking for a white BMW, which was apparently stolen from a Waukegan car dealership last week
LAKE COUNTY, Ill. (WLS) -- A pregnant mother who was run over trying to stop car thieves from taking her vehicle while one of her children was still inside is recovering Friday.
The 34-year-old was seriously injured in the incident, and underwent surgeries throughout the day at a hospital in Libertyville. Authorities say her injuries are not life-threatening.
Officials said the woman pulled into her driveway at around 3:30 p.m. Thursday with two children inside her vehicle. She took one child into the house, but as she was coming back out for the second child, she said a white BMW pulled into the driveway. An unknown person got out of that vehicle and fought with the woman before stealing her car with the child still inside, the sheriff's office said.
"She, of course, was fighting for her child as her child was inside the car. However, this offender knocked her to the ground, battered her, and jumped into the driver seat of her Volkswagen," said Deputy Chief Christopher Covelli.
The woman was then run over by either her vehicle or the other vehicle as they fled, police said. She suffered serious injuries to her extremities but was still able to call 911.
"She sustained some broken bones and some really serious injuries. They then fled, however, she had the strength and ability to call 911," Covelli said.
Investigators are not discounting the possibility she may have been targeted.
"There are some indications that it is possible she was targeted from a previous stop she made in a nearby town and she was followed from there," Covelli said.
The 2-year-old was found abandoned but unharmed in a parking lot in the 2200-block of Lakeside Drive in Waukegan a short time later. A person working at a nearby business said they saw two vehicles enter the parking lot and the driver of one of the vehicles abandon the small child before both fled again.
The worker called 911 and was able to rescue the two-year-old before they could wander into the busy roadway.
About 15 minutes after that, the vehicle was found unoccupied at Casimir Pulaski Drive and Waukegan Road, the sheriff's office said.
Sheriff's detectives said they are looking for the white BMW, which was apparently stolen from a Waukegan car dealership last week. No one is in custody.
If you see the stolen BMW or have any information about this incident please call the Lake County Sheriff's Criminal Investigations Division at 847-377-4000 or contact Lake County CrimeStoppers at: www.lakecountycrimestoppers.org.
