After Caraline was found, searchers at the parking lot also discovered a small wooden cross sitting on the ground.
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An Albuquerque police officer rushed to the rescue of a 3-year-old girl who was abandoned after a carjacker stole the vehicle with her inside.
Officer Daren DeAguero told the Albuquerque Journal she was “very cold and very scared”.
The suspect is described as 25 to 30 years old, approximately 5 feet 11 inches to 6 feet tall, medium to heavy build and possibly Hispanic.
He said she was found “out there by herself in freezing temperatures with just a little jacket on”.
“It’s absolutely fantastic. It’s the days that we live for”.
Filmed on Officer Poccia’s lapel camera, the footage shows the little girl being spotted, scooped up and wrapped up in coats and blankets to keep her warm.
Officer Poccia says he doesn’t consider himself a hero. “I was just very happy and thankful that we were able to find her”, Poccia said. He says finding Caraline was a group effort. “The only thing that could make it better, the cherry on top, would be getting this guy in handcuffs”, said Officer Tanner Tixier of the Albuquerque Police Department. He brought the cross to the hospital where the child was evaluated, and her mother explained that Caraline’s grandmother had given her the cross earlier in the day.
Officer Poccia, a father of three, was calm in the moment, but says the emotion hit him later that night.
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Drobik said investigators have scheduled an interview to ask Caraline about the incident. “And the nightmare came true yesterday”.
