Relief as baby in dad’s stolen car is found safe

Residents ‘horrified’ and nervous at theft in suburban cul-de-sac

A BABY who was in the back seat of a car when it was stolen from a Dublin estate has been reunited with her family.

Gardaí have now launched an investigation into what a local councillor described as a ‘bewildering’ event.

The thief reportedly pounced when the child’s father went back into the house at Parkvale in Baldoyle where he had left his keys at around 7.30am yesterday.

The oblivious 13-month-old was still in the back seat when the thief made off with the car.

It was located in the nearby area of Clongriffin around 45 minutes later – with the baby inside.

Gardaí confirmed that the child was unharmed during the ordeal, and was returned to her family shortly after the car was found.

Residents of Parkvale were horrified at yesterday’s theft, describing the estate as a family-oriented area where neighbours ‘look out for one another’.

One neighbour Helen Fox told the Irish Daily Mail that she heard tyres screeching when the car was stolen, and that the gardaí were quickly at the scene.

The mother-of-one, who grew up in the area, said that the incident had left her anxious as she has a six-year-old son.

‘The kids are always out playing and it’s never something you think would happen,’ she said.

Another resident said that crime of this level never happened in the neighbourhood.

‘I’m here 26 years, and it’s a very quiet estate,’ he said.

There was a sense of relief among residents that the child was returned safely.

However, one neighbour said that many families in the estate with children were now very frightened following the terrifying incident.

The cul-de-sac is home mainly to families, many of whom have young children, and is also located near a secondary school.

Fingal County Councillor Keith Redmond described Parkvale as very settled and family-centric.

‘We’re just all in shock really. The whole area just can’t believe that something like this would happen here,’ he said.

Cllr Redmond added that the relatively new development was mainly home to young families.

‘People just go about their normal daily family business in that area.

‘That area does not have any kind of history of violent crime or anything like that, so it’s really bewildering as to how it would suddenly arise.’

Cllr Redmond said that his heart goes out to the family, as the 45 minutes the child was missing for must have ‘seemed like days’.

‘At half seven in the morning, I can only surmise that she was on the way to the creche, maybe,’ he said.

He acknowledged that the theft must have been a ‘massive trauma’ for the girl’s parents, adding that as a parent himself, he can only imagine that they were ‘absolutely terrorised by it all’.

He said he believed that tracking down the thieves was at the top of the gardaí’s list, as it was likely that the car was stolen with the intention of being used in another crime.

Gardaí are asking witnesses to come forward, particularly anyone who may have seen a dark navy Opel Vectra hatchback in the area between 7:30am and 8:15pm.

Anyone who thinks that they may have information which could be helpful to gardaí in tracking down the thief should contact gardaí in Howth at 01 666 4900, Raheny at 01 666 4300 – or the Garda Confidential Line at 1800 666 111.

Found 45 minutes later