Woman charged with endangerment after leaving baby in running car

An Indiana woman is facing charges after she left her 1-year-old baby inside a running vehicle while picking up food from a west suburban restaurant Monday afternoon.

Tania H. Madrigal, 30, faces one count of endangering the life or health of a child, according to Cicero village spokesman Ray Hanania. Madrigal, an East Chicago resident, was also wanted on an outstanding Oak Lawn warrant for DUI.

Madrigal pulled up in front of Al’s Italian Restaurant at 6050 W. Cermak Rd. in Cicero to pick up a pizza, Hanania said. She left her Jeep Cherokee running in one of the diagonal parking spots in front of the restaurant with her 1-year-old baby in the backseat.

When she was inside, a man got inside of the car and drove off, Hanania said. Minutes later he apparently realized a baby was in the backseat and abandoned the car.

The car was found a few blocks away in an alley, when a neighbor heard what she thought was a baby crying loudly and called 911, Hanania said. The car was recovered and the baby was safe and unharmed.

Police are still searching for the suspect, who was described as a 5-foot-7, 140-pound Hispanic man wearing a red shirt, Hanania said.

“I want to thank all of the individuals who stepped forward to help us in this case, and the work of our detectives,” Cicero Police Chief Jerry Chlada Jr. said in a statement.

“We received a lot of help from the public and I am glad that the baby was returned to its mother safe and sound,” Chlada said.

Anyone with information about the suspect was asked to contact Cicero police at (708) 652-2130.