A Kenosha man is accused of stealing a rental vehicle from outside a Pleasant Prairie gas station early Thursday morning – with a 9-year boy sleeping inside.
A California man rented the SUV from O’Hare Airport. He and his teenage son were in the gas station when 58-year old Michael Newhouse allegedly drove off with the man’s younger son in the back seat.
It became the instant subject of a search by Pleasant Prairie police and surrounding law enforcement agencies. The man’s cellphone was “pinged” to reveal the SUV near downtown Kenosha at one point.
The Lake County Sheriff’s Office was eventually contacted, and deputies spotted the vehicle in Lincolnshire, near I-94 and Route 22. Pursuit was stopped at I-294 in Des Plaines. The 9-year-old in the back seat was still asleep, according to a news release. Newhouse was taken into custody on felony and traffic offenses. The Kenosha County District Attorney’s Office may have additional charges.
WRJN