RIVERHEAD, N.Y. (1010 WINS/WCBS 880) – A 51-year-old homeless woman was arrested on Thursday after allegedly stealing a running car from a Long Island parking lot that contained a sleeping 7-year-old child, the Riverhead Police Department said.
At 11:09 p.m. on Christmas Day, officers received a call from a 39-year-old woman and responded to the Riverhead Stationary Store located at 407 East Main Street, police said.
According to officials, the woman had left her 2016 Ford Fusion running with the heat on while she ran into the store because her 7-year-old child was sleeping in the backseat.
While she was inside, Shawanna James, 51, allegedly entered the car and drove off with the child in tow, police said.
A search conducted by the Riverhead Town Police Department, Southampton Town Police Department and the New York State Troopers ended when authorities found the car in Flanders, with the child still sleeping inside.
The child was not injured.
The woman who reported the incident was arrested for endangering the welfare of a child, and the child was turned over to a family member, police said.
James, a homeless woman who frequents the Riverhead area, was identified as the wanted car thief by the Riverhead Police Detective Squad.
Police arrested the suspect at 2:45 p.m. on Thursday near 71 Zion Street in Riverhead.
James was charged with grand larceny, criminal possession of stolen property and endangering the welfare of a child. Her arraignment was slated for Friday morning.