Man steals car with three children inside in Breda, arrested after chase in Belgium

A man stole a family car in Breda Saturday while three children were still strapped into the back seat, then was arrested hours later in Belgium after a police chase, authorities and Omroep Brabant reported.

The theft occurred around 5 a.m. as a family was preparing to leave for a vacation to Austria. The children, ages 4, 6 and 10, had already gotten into the car while their parents briefly went back inside to lock the front door. With the engine running, a man got into the vehicle and drove off.

After about 700 meters, the suspect stopped and forced the children out of the car. They were not injured.

Surveillance footage shows a man wearing a backpack walking up to the car, which had a roof box, getting inside and driving away.

“It’s already awful when your car is stolen. But when there are three children sitting in the back seat, then something inside you snaps,” the father said in comments to Omroep Brabant. He said he and his wife immediately tried to pursue the suspect in another vehicle.

“He threw my daughter in front of my car to block the road,” the father said. “He was driving so fast. Yes, then you lose him. Then you drive home, devastated.”

Several hours later, the family was informed that the stolen car had been recovered. According to the father, Belgian police pursued the vehicle and forced it off the road in Geel, where the suspect was arrested.

The BMW was tracked using an installed tracking system and iPads that were inside the vehicle.

Police said a 36-year-old man with no fixed address was arrested. He is known as a repeat offender and remains in custody in Belgium. Dutch authorities have requested his extradition.

“It presumably was never his intention to harm the children,” police said. “The man saw a car with a running engine and likely saw his chance to steal it.”