A homeless man was charged Feb. 15 with kidnapping a 4-year-old boy after he stole the vehicle that the child was in, according to authorities.
Long Beach Police were notified of the theft of a 2021 Honda Accord Feb. 13 around 5:45 p.m. in the area of 1st Street and Linden Avenue. The vehicle was stolen after the driver left the car running unattended with his son still inside, according to a Long Beach Police Department press release.
California Highway Patrol issued an Amber Alert to notify residents in the area of the boy’s disappearance, according to police.
Two women who received the alert on their phones found the car, and called 911.
The police located the car on the 100 block of South Pine Avenue around 8:10 p.m. with the boy, unharmed, still inside the car, but the man who had stolen it was gone.
Police obtained surveillance footage from the area that showed the direction in which the suspect had gone once he left the car, police said.
The man, identified as Timothy Wood, 34, was found near Pine Avenue and Shoreline Drive and was arrested around 10:30 p.m.
Mr. Wood received one charge each for kidnapping, grand theft of an automobile, driving or taking a vehicle without consent, and child abuse under circumstances or conditions likely to cause great bodily injury or death, according to authorities.
His bail was set at $100,000.
