Police in Texas are currently conducting an investigation into the incident in which a tow truck was used to remove a five-year-old girl from a vehicle while her mother was conversing with a neighbor.
An emergency contact regarding a missing endangered child was received by the San Antonio Police Department at approximately 11:00 a.m. on Monday. The responding officers conversed with a woman who reported that a tow truck had taken her vehicle, which was occupied by her five-year-old daughter.
“The mother stated to police that she parked her vehicle and left it running with the flashers on while she got out of the car to attempt to contact a neighbor in another apartment,” police said in a statement emailed to Law&Crime. “The mother stated that she was in eyesight of her daughter and never lost contact with her.”
The girl’s mother, who is not identified in the statement, was waiting at the apartment door when the tow truck swooped in and picked up the mother’s vehicle without properly setting it in with chains and [brake] lights, according to the authorities.
The mother, who is nine months pregnant, was accompanied by an individual who is not named in the police statement. According to the police statement, the woman was compelled to stop due to a “medical emergency.”
The towing company was contacted “after a short while,” and it reported that the child and the driver were present at its location.
The victim was unharmed, and the mother was reunited with her, according to the police.
The motorist, who is referred to as “the suspect” by the police, departed the scene without engaging in conversation with them, according to the statement.
“The suspect is not charged with anything at this time but is being investigated for Endangering a Child,” police said, adding that the investigation is still active.
Trinity Towing was identified as the towing company by the local CBS affiliate KENS. Gilbert Ramirez was a good Samaritan who assisted the mother in pursuit after the tow truck.
According to a statement released by the towing company and reported by KENS, “There were no signs of anyone inside or around the vehicle.”
“We later learned a little girl was asleep on the floorboard when we first towed the vehicle and was not visible to the driver,” the statement added. The car was at the tow yard for “a few minutes” before the child was discovered inside.
Ramirez stated that he observed the mother screaming for her child as the tow vehicle exited the parking lot as he was departing his apartment. He stated that he promptly took action.
According to KENS, he stated, “I said, ‘Well, get in the car and let’s chase it.’ But it was moving too fast, so I pulled over.” “I was unaware of its trajectory.”
Ramirez asserts that he initiated the police contact.
“I would not want that to happen to my daughter … or anyone’s daughter,” Ramirez said, according to the station.
