Mother chases suspect after he steals car with child inside from metro Atlanta gas station

HOLLY SPRINGS, Ga. — A 48-year-old man is charged with kidnapping after police say he stole a car with a child inside.

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It happened, shortly before 8 p.m. On Monday. Holly Springs police were called to the Hop-in and Shell gas station on Holly Springs Parkway regarding a car theft.

Dispatchers told police that a child was in the car at the time of the theft. The dispatchers also told police, that the child’s mother and the owner of the car chased after the vehicle.

When the suspect, identified as Joseph Avram, 48, stopped a short distance away, the woman yanked Avram from her car.

Avram ran towards the One Stop Package Store and Pinecrest Motor Lodge across the street.

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Holly Springs police and Cherokee County deputies searched for Avram, after receiving a photo and description from video footage. Authorities were able to get the suspect’s driver’s license information and phone number. Officers pinged Avram’s cell phone, showing a location in Atlanta near a Grey Hound bus station.

Atlanta police were notified and were able to locate and arrest Avram.

He was booked into the Cherokee County Jail and charged with kidnapping and theft by taking.

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