A woman from Columbus, Nalah Jackson, was sentenced to prison on August 27th, 2024 for committing grand theft auto and kidnapping two 5-month-old twins in December 2022.

According to The Columbus Dispatch, before committing the crime, she was homeless and Jackson also abused substances. This could be why she committed these crimes (Bruner, Aug. 27th). The twins, Kason and Ky’air Thomas, along with the 2010 Honda Accord, were taken when the mother of the children left them in an idle car to grab a DoorDash order at Donatos in Columbus.

Jackson told authorities that she did not realize the babies were in the backseat when stealing the vehicle, and that she wouldn’t have done so if she saw them. Jackson then fled across various cities in Ohio, leaving one baby at the Dayton International Airport in a car seat between two cars on a cold December night. She then took off with Kason to Indianapolis using the same stolen car.

Jackson then abandoned the car and baby; Kason was then trapped in the stolen Honda for 2 days. Many people were searching for him while Jackson was on the run, selling stolen products in front of a local gas station in Indianapolis. A woman who purchased some of Jackson’s goods gave the suspect a ride and they both exchanged phone numbers. However, the customer found out Jackson was a suspect. Then, the woman, along with her friend, created a plan to inform a police station about Jackson’s whereabouts.

The two women succeeded, informing the police while on the phone when Jackson wasn’t in earshot of the two. The U.S. Department of Justice reports that after Jackson was apprehended, the women took their investigations further. They went on a hunt to find the second baby, Kason. They were able to, see him still in the car which was covered in snow. He was alive despite being stuck in the car for two days.

The twins, after a few checkups, were completely fine. Nalah Jackson now faces more than 23 years in prison for these crimes.