Kansas City, Kansas police are thanking the community and the media for helping to locate a 3-year-old girl who was abducted by car thieves.
Skytracker video of 3-year-old Amaya Vester running alone on a gravel road in rural Leavenworth County is hard to watch.
The toddler was asleep in the back seat of a car as it was stolen from a KCK gas station on Wednesday.
Major William Howard Jr. was driving the black SUV seen heading towards Amaya on Skytracker video.
Howard Jr. was headed home when he heard the call.
"I suspect she'd been there about an hour. There were a lot of problems with the car being abandoned in that location. We could not see that car from the road," said Howard Jr.
Amaya's father, Edmond Vester, spoke to 41 Action News. He lives in Joplin, Missouri and was at work when she was taken. Family members alerted him of the online news coverage.
"I was mad. I was furious. I would never leave my kid in the car by herself, not at 3 years old," said Vester.
He said Amaya's mother's boyfriend left her alone inside the car at the Valero gas station in KCK. Vester drove to Kansas City on Wednesday night to see his daughter, and then returned to Joplin for work.
"I was happy and relieved to see that she was OK. No cuts, scrapes or bruises. I am very thankful that they were able to locate her as quickly as they did," said Vester.
Police told 41 Action News they are grateful for the teamwork between the community, police and local media.
