HENRICO, Va. (WRIC) — A Richmond woman said it was through the connection of social media that someone recognized her car and called police, hours after it had been stolen.
The situation started Sunday afternoon at the Colonial Apartments in Henrico. Kiki Ramos told 8News that she went inside the apartments for a few hours, but when she returned, there was no sign of her car.
“When I walked out, there was glass on the parking spot where I was parked. My car was gone…just gone,” she said.
Immediately, she dialed 911. When police arrived on the scene, an officer told her that hers wasn’t the first report of a stolen vehicle in the area.
“The officer that responded told me that I was the fourth car within the last two hours that had been stolen,” she said.
In an instant, Ramos was without her child’s car seat, her medication, her purse and work supplies. After filing the police report and calling her insurance, she decided to use social media to her advantage.
In a Facebook post, she gave a description of the car with the license plate number, adding the location where it was last seen.
The post reached hundreds of people, and the next day, Ramos received a call from a friend.
“She was on her way home and saw the assailants getting in my car,” she said. “My VCU parking pass was still in the window and that’s how she knew it was the car.”
Another call to police ignited the hunt for the stolen vehicle. Henrico police confirmed they were alerted to the car driving along Wilmer Road. Officers eventually located the vehicle on Montbrook Lane, which was one mile away.
“I was on the phone with the friend for about 20 minutes before police called and said they had found my car,” Ramos said
According to police reports, there were four juveniles inside. All of them ran from the scene. Fortunately, the officers caught them, and at least two were charged in the theft.
Ramos says she’s thankful to police, social media and her friends for reuniting her with her car.
