Clayton County police continue searching for the suspects responsible in a car theft in which a four-year-old girl and a one-month-old infant were strapped inside.
Arya Davenport, 4, and Ava Wilmer, 1-month-old, had been left unattended while their mother, Precious Wilmer, had gone inside to pay for gas at a College Park QuikTrip. Wilmer said she left the children in the car because of the cold temperatures.
It wasn’t until she came back outside that Wilmer realized her vehicle was being driven away with her children in the back seat.
PHOTOS: Baby missing after car stolen
After a massive manhunt, police located both girls down the road from the scene or the carjacking.
Georgia State University police chief Joseph Spillane called Clayton County police when he saw 4-year-old Arya walking down the shoulder of the roadway near I-285 and Riverdale Road. One-month-old Ava was found along South Fulton Parkway, still sitting in her car seat.
The temperature outside was 22 degrees with "dangerous wind chills" when the baby was found, according to the 11Alive News app.
“The weather was an afterthought,” Captain Mark Richards with Clayton County Police Department said. “We knew we had to recover the two children.”
Following the children’s reunion with their mother, police found the vehicle abandoned near 2285 Metropolitan Parkway.
“This is definitely a happy ending,” Richards said. “These instances from time to time sometimes they don’t end up in a positive fashion but this time the children have been returned seemingly unharmed.”
Police are looking for at least two suspects, but no descriptions have been released.
“The only open end in this investigation is the perpetrators are still at large,” Richards said.
The suspects are facing face motor vehicle theft charges and two counts of kidnapping.
The mother who left the children in the car has faced some criticism on social media. Police have not said if she will face charges.
As a public reminder, police stress to not leave anything in your cars or leave them running.
“My primary issue is stolen vehicles with keys left in the car or the car left running,” Richards said. “We implore our citizens, we try to educate our victims that that type of things is counterproductive to what we’re trying to do."
