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Karen Scullin ReportingA mother watched a man drive off in her van with her two young children inside. It was about fifteen minutes of terror as a mother who took her two kids on her early morning paper route ended up the target of a carjacking.
It was a close call and the Durrant family feels very lucky after a twenty-year old man stole their van with their two young children inside.
Adrian Durrant and her two kids piled in the van this morning for their paper route. But when they got to one cul-de-sac, the morning routine was suddenly shattered.
Adrian Durrant, Carjacking Victim: “I stood in the middle of the road, kinda held out my hands and yelled stop. I start screaming help me, somebody help me, please help me, my kids, my van, they're gone."
Adrian had stepped out of the van for an instant when she saw her vehicle pulling away with her two kids inside and an unknown man behind the wheel.
Adrian Durrant: “Put my hands out, trying to stop the van, praying that he wouldn't hit me, ya know. And I looked him square in the eyes and he just turned on the headlights. And that scared me, cause I knew he was going to go."
But as the van sped away six year old C.J. didn't make a sound and was worried about his three year old sister.
Adrian Durrant: “C.J. woke up. And he covered Lyne with the blanket. Then he laid down on the floor and covered himself up with the blanket and laid still. He's a hero."
After a short police chase and a blown tire officers finally stopped the van and made an arrest. 20-year old Jeremy Smithson is now in the Salt Lake County Jail. Smithson is booked on suspicion of kidnapping. That may change depending on whether or not he knew the kids were inside. That hasn't been determined just yet.
