A 33-year-old woman is now detained following an alleged carjacking incident on the West Side, during which a mother was targeted while her 4-year-old son was in the back seat.
The petition from prosecutors outlines that the 24-year-old mother was inside a running Hyundai Elantra parked in the 2800 block of West Roosevelt Road while her boyfriend went into a nearby store. It was during this time that Tamika Maclin allegedly entered the driver’s seat and began to struggle with the mother.
Shortly after, an accomplice reportedly opened the passenger door, forcefully removed the woman from the vehicle, and threw her onto the ground. Both suspects then drove off in the Elantra, with the young boy still inside. Authorities later found the vehicle on South Pulaski Road with the child unharmed.
Maclin was apprehended at the scene, but the accomplice managed to escape. During police questioning, she acknowledged taking the vehicle and was aware that the boy was present. Furthermore, she claimed that her accomplice had recently been released from Cook County Jail.
The victim suffered bruises on her body, but her son was found physically unharmed, as per a report from the Chicago police.
Maclin faces serious charges, including aggravated vehicular hijacking involving a minor and aggravated kidnapping. Judge James Murphy III has ordered her to remain in custody until her trial.
This incident follows closely on the heels of another recent carjacking case where a Gurnee woman was charged for stealing a running vehicle from a laundromat parking lot while a 2-year-old was left in the back seat. In that situation, Mica Best, 35, reportedly abandoned the child on a roadside in Oak Park, from where he was later recovered, albeit cold but unharmed.
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