Accused car thief left baby in hot car for an hour, Des Moines police say

By Kelby Wingert

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    DES MOINES, Iowa (KCCI) — Court documents for a Des Moines man accused of stealing an SUV with a baby in it last week show the infant was left in the hot vehicle for an hour after the man abandoned it in a metro parking lot.

Corey Le, 32, of Des Moines, was arrested Friday after allegedly stealing a 2015 Mercedes-Benz SUV in the 2300 block of Ingersoll Avenue. He is charged with operating a motor vehicle without owner’s consent and neglect of a dependent.

According to the criminal complaint, after Le stole the vehicle at approximately 10:42 a.m. Friday, he realized there was a 9-month-old baby in a car seat in the back of the vehicle. Le then abandoned the vehicle in the 2700 block of Ingersoll, leaving the infant in the car with the windows rolled up and no air conditioning.

The SUV wasn’t located by police for nearly an hour, during which the temperature ranged from 77 to 79 degrees. The criminal complaint said the child had rosy cheeks when located by an officer. The baby was checked out by medics and returned to her mother.

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