PARAMOUNT, Calif. (AP) — Los Angeles sheriff’s officials say a woman stole a car outside a fast-food restaurant in Paramount without realizing there was an autistic teen in the vehicle.
Sheriff’s Lt. Charles Calderaro says Friday that 17-year-old Frank Barboa was in the back seat of a black 2015 Honda Civic when his sister went into a Jack in the Box and left the keys in the car.
He says a woman hopped in the driver’s seat and drove off. Calderaro says the woman was “kind” to Barboa and he wasn’t harmed.
The car was abandoned about 2 miles from the restaurant. Barboa, who has the mental capacity of a 12-year-old, was able to take a bus home.
Calderaro says investigators are looking for the woman.