California boy sleeping in car that was stolen in front of his home is found safe 2 miles away

FAIRFIELD, Calif. – An 8-year-old boy snoozing in the backseat of his family’s running car appears to have slept through his brief kidnapping Monday after the vehicle was stolen in front of his Northern California home, police said.

Brock Guzman was found safe about 2 miles (3 kilometres) away in the abandoned car following an hourslong search. A thief likely happened upon the 2001 Toyota Corolla when the boy’s father left it briefly unattended, police said.

The father had placed the sleeping boy in the Corolla around 4:45 a.m., started the engine and went back into the house in Fairfield to get some belongings and his older son.

When the father went back outside, the car was gone and an unfamiliar bicycle lay nearby. He hopped into another family vehicle and sped off in search of the Corolla. The boy’s mother frantically called police, and authorities issued an alert.

Less than four hours later, a resident called police and said the car was parked in the neighbourhood. When officers approached it around 8:15 a.m., the suspect was gone and Brock was still asleep. He was not injured.

“We don’t know for sure if he slept through the whole thing, but it looks that way,” Officer Kathryn McCormick said. “We hope that was the case.”