New footage from a dashboard camera has been released, revealing a shocking incident where a 9-month-old infant boy was thrown from a vehicle on an Ohio freeway while his father evaded the police, reaching speeds of up to 100 mph.
According to the Bryan Police Department, Zachary Chervenka, 32, was approached by officers in a Walmart parking lot around 9:30 p.m. on December 1 following information from Indiana indicating an active arrest warrant against him. Chervenka swiftly drove away from the location, abandoning his girlfriend who was loading items into the vehicle.
At the time of the escape, the couple’s two children – the baby, securely fastened in a car seat, and a 5-year-old girl – were in the van. The van’s door was left open as Chervenka fled, with law enforcement in pursuit, as per WTVG reports.
According to WPTA, Chervenka drove reckless the entire time, although the road was busy with traffic, and blew threw nine stop signs.
Officers disengaged after about 15 minutes because of weather conditions, and Chervenka later dropped the 5-year-old off with a friend. He called the mother to tell her where she could find the children — and that the baby fell out of the car during the pursuit.
The pursuing officer did not see the baby’s car seat fly from the van and bounce along the side of the road, according to WTVG. Officers returned to the area with the mother and found the child after about an hour searching, .
An emergency room doctor said that baby’s “body temperature was extremely low and could have been life-threatening if he was left out in the cold for much longer,” according to a police report.
Chervenka was found and arrested the next day, telling police he ran because he was scared and that it was a dumb decision. He’s been charged with endangering children.
