A manhunt is under way for an “opportunistic” thief who stole a car with a boy inside in Melbourne’s southeast.
At about 3.25pm on Monday the two-year-old’s father pulled over the family car, a black Kia Carnival, on Cleeland St in Dandenong after he was involved in a crash.
Detective Acting Senior Sergeant Dean Hayes said the child’s father was speaking to the other driver involved in the collision when the unthinkable happened.
He said “an opportunistic person then came to the vehicle”, jumped into the driver’s seat and sped away with the boy still inside.
Sergeant Hayes said the child’s father was “hysterical”.
“The victim observed his car being driven away,” he said.
“He was very concerned and it was difficult to get some information out of him at the start, as you can appreciate.”
About an hour after his abduction, the two-year-old was found wandering the aisles at a supermarket on the Burwood Highway in Ferntree Gully, having been dumped by the thief.
Concerned bystanders notified police after spotting the boy by himself.
The black Kia Carnival with Victorian registration 1WU5QT is still missing, and anyone who sights the vehicle has been asked to contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000.
Anyone with CCTV, dashcam footage, information or who witnessed the incident is also urged to contact Crime Stoppers.