Terrified mother reveals why she left her baby in car before it was stolen – and the strange coincidence of how she was almost abducted as a child
- Adelaide mother Erika Carter has recalled the moment her baby was abducted
- She was buying bread as her car was stolen with her four-month-old still inside
- Police later found her vehicle abandoned with the child still in the backseat
- Ms Carter said she had almost been abducted when she was 11 in Holden Hill
A mother whose baby was abducted while she bought a loaf of bread has revealed she was also the victim of an attempted abduction when she was a child.
Erika Carter, from Adelaide, had ducked into a deli in Klemzig to grab a loaf of bread at about 7.45am on Monday and left her four-month-old baby, Jordan, strapped in his seat with the car’s engine running.
In the brief time she was inside a 37-year-old man arrived at the carpark in an allegedly stolen Mazda, jumped into her Honda, and began driving away with little Jordan still in the backseat.
Scroll down for the video.
CCTV footage shows the moment desperate Adelaide mother Erika Carter (above) watched as her car was stolen, with her four-month-old baby still strapped in the backseat
CCTV footage obtained by Seven News shows the moment the desperate mother runs out to her car and tries to stop it driving away.
Some two hours later police found Ms Carter’s abandoned vehicle just 5km away in Enfield with Jordan still inside.
He is reportedly in good health despite being left in the car amid chilly temperatures of around 12C.
However in a strange twist Ms Carter revealed she was also the victim of an abduction attempt when she was just 11.
Baby Jordan (left) was found two hours after the robbery with Ms Carter (right) noting ‘it’s sad we live in a world where we can’t trust what’s around us, and we can’t feel safe’
She said she had been walking her mum’s dog in Holden Hill – just 5km from where Jordan was later abducted – when she was ‘grabbed and put into a car’.
‘My dog bit the abductor, and I managed to unlock the passenger’s door and get out but that took me years to get over,’ she told Seven.
Ms Carter said ‘it’s sad’ that she wasn’t able to leave her car for just a few minutes without someone taking advantage.
‘I went for a quick trip to get a loaf of bread and made the wrong decision to leave bubs for that split second and as I was paying for my bread, I heard my car rev and my heart just sunk,’ she said.
Ms Carter (above) revealed she had been the victim of an attempted abduction when she was 11, just 5km from where Jordan was later taken
‘It’s sad we live in a world where we can’t trust what’s around us, and we can’t feel safe.’
Police arrested the 37-year-old Para Hills man at his home on Monday night and charged him with the abduction of a child and illegal use.
He pleaded guilty to stealing the vehicle and baby Jordan on Tuesday.
A second man with an outstanding warrant was also arrested at the home.
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