CLAY COUNTY, Mo. — A Kansas City man is charged in Clay County after he allegedly stole a car from the woman he was dating, then later abandoned the vehicle with an infant inside.
Keith A. Parker, 27, is charged with 2nd degree robbery, tampering with a motor vehicle, and endangering the welfare of a child.
Court records state that police were dispatched to an area on Parvin Road near Interstate 435 on Sunday around 9:30 p.m. in regard to an outside disturbance.
When officers arrived, a woman told them she had gotten into an argument with Parker, whom she had been dating for about 3 weeks, while giving him a ride home. She said as the argument escalated, she pulled over on the side of the road and told him to get out of her vehicle.
She told police at that point, the suspect reached across her and opened the driver’s door, then climbed over her and began pulling her out of the car by her hair and punching her.
He forced her out of the car, then got in the driver’s seat and drove away with her infant son still in the back seat.. She said she tried to open the driver’s door, but was dragged along the ground as he drove away.
A witness at a nearby QuikTrip saw her being dragged by the car, according to court documents. She told the witness what was happening, and he got in his vehicle and attempted to follow Parker as he fled southbound on I-435. The witness found the victim’s car in the area of 210 Highway and Searcy Creek Parkway with the baby boy inside.
Police noted that the baby was left in the back seat of the car with no heat as the temperatures outside was 24 degrees.
Officers at the scene found a set of footprints in the snow leading away from the car to an area of 210 Highway and N. Randolph Road. They tracked the footprints and found Parker, taking him into custody after a short foot pursuit.
