A mom and her two young children were carjacked and taken more than 20 miles away against their will after someone jumped inside their vehicle as they sat outside a suburban Walgreens Sunday afternoon, according to authorities.
Wheeling police said the mom and children were in the backseat of their vehicle around 3:30 p.m. in the parking lot of a Walgreens in the 0-100 block of North Milwaukee Avenue. The family had been waiting inside their car as the woman's husband ran into the store.
When the husband came out of the store he told police his vehicle was gone and his wife, 1-week-old infant and 3-year-old child were missing.
"After several unsuccessful attempts to contact his wife by cell phone, the police department was contacted," Wheeling police said.
Surveillance video from store showed a man entering the family's vehicle and driving away in an unknown direction, authorities said.
The vehicle and family were later found on Chicago's Northwest Side in the 4700 block of West Belmont -- roughly 22 miles from where they had been taken, police said. The mom and children were not harmed, but the woman's cell phone was stolen in the process.
Police had only a vague description of the suspect, who they described as a white man between 37 and 40 years old, with dark hair, wearing a green puffy jacket, white and black camouflage pants, a black winter hat and gym shoes. The man had light-colored eyes and a short beard, police said.
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Less than 12 hours later, a string of carjackings were reported in Chicago's Northwest and West sides. Police said it was unclear if any of the carjackings were related.
Anyone with information on the Wheeling carjacking is being asked to call (847) 459-2632.
