ATLANTA, Georgia — Atlanta police found a stolen car and recovered a 2-year-old girl unharmed within 15 minutes after her mother reported that the vehicle had been taken with the child still inside, according to the department and local and national reports.
Watch Atlanta Police Department's official body-camera release
The Atlanta Police Department released body-camera video and the 911 call after the July 30 recovery. Because the newly released footage materially documents the officers' approach, arrest and efforts to comfort the child, ThinBlueNews is embedding the agency's official public video rather than substituting only a still image and an off-site link.
Video source: Atlanta Police Department's official Facebook video, released July 31, 2026. Use the linked agency post if the embedded player does not load. The footage includes a distressed child; ThinBlueNews is not publishing the child's name or image.
License-plate readers helped officers locate the car
ABC News reported, citing police and a recording of the 911 call, that the child's mother was completing an Instacart delivery when the running vehicle was stolen with her daughter in the back seat.
Investigators determined that the car had been left running, according to police. ABC News said officers used Atlanta's license-plate-reader network to locate it within 15 minutes.
11Alive reported that police received the call at approximately 4:30 p.m. July 30 and found the vehicle, child and suspect in the 2000 block of Howell Mill Road NW. The station said no injuries were reported.
Bodycam shows the recovery and arrest
The released video shows officers approaching the stopped vehicle, directing the driver to raise his hands and taking him into custody. The child can be heard crying as officers work to reassure her. Police said she was unharmed and reunited with her parents.
Atlanta police identified the arrested man as 21-year-old Saleem Martin. ABC News reported that the department listed charges including kidnapping, theft by taking, simple battery, entering an automobile, cruelty to children and criminal attempt to commit a felony.
Those charges are allegations. Guilt must be established in court, and ThinBlueNews is not making any claim about motive or facts beyond the public police account and cited reporting.
A fast public-safety response with a clear prevention lesson
The outcome reflects several parts of the emergency-response chain working quickly: an immediate 911 report, coordinated patrol and auto-crimes work, license-plate-reader information and officers who safely recovered a young child.
The case also carries a direct prevention reminder: even a brief stop can become dangerous when a running vehicle is left unattended, especially with a child inside.
Readers can find more verified public-safety work in ThinBlueNews' bodycam rescue videos, police rescue news, police hero stories and law enforcement news coverage.
Sources, video and visual attribution
- Atlanta Police Department: “APD Rescues Child From Stolen Vehicle,” released July 31, 2026. This is the official source for the public body-camera video and department account.
- ABC News: “2-year-old rescued from stolen vehicle while mother makes delivery,” published August 1, 2026. This report supplies the 911-call context, 15-minute license-plate-reader timeline, charges and APD-distributed source frame.
- 11Alive/WXIA: “APD: Toddler returned to parents after car stolen with child inside; 1 in custody,” updated July 31, 2026. The local report confirms the response time, recovery location and no-injury outcome.
Featured-image note: The image is a true frame from Atlanta Police Department body-camera footage distributed by ABC News. ThinBlueNews cropped that source frame to a 1200-by-630 editorial image and added only a headline and source label. No person, vehicle or incident detail was generated or substituted.
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