Two Portland children made a daring escape when a woman hijacked their father's car for a 10-minute joyride.
According to reports, Iosha Dashe Milledge, 33, was arrested on January 22 when her father ran into a store leaving his two children, ages 9 and 11, alone in an idle car. He has been charged with jumping on. Portland Police Department.
The unidentified father sprained his finger trying to stop Milledge from driving away with his children.
“I rushed over to stop her… but as I was holding on to the door, she ran away,” the father said. I told KGW8. “I wasn't fast enough to get her out of her car.”
The brave brothers jumped out when the car stopped at a traffic light and alerted a good Samaritan who called 911.
Officers responded quickly to the call at 2:46 p.m. and eventually located the children and brought them safely home to their families.
Shortly afterward, a local deputy spotted Milledge in a stolen vehicle traveling on an interstate in North Portland and alerted other officers.
When police cornered Mirage to stop her from driving any further, she ignored authorities and continued driving, sparking a chase on the interstate.
“A pursuit began and the vehicle continued north on Interstate 5 into Washington state,” police said in a statement.
Mirage was booked into the Clark County Jail and faces multiple charges of attempted escape, reckless driving, driving on a suspended or revoked license, and eluding.
Oregon was listed as the state with the fourth highest number of auto thefts in 2022, with 551 auto thefts per 100,000 people. According to data tracked by the FBI.
In 2022 alone, there were 10,800 reported stolen vehicles in Portland, but that has since decreased to more than 7,000 stolen vehicles in 2023, according to the Portland Police Bureau.
“Once the extradition process is complete, Mirage will be transported to Multnomah County, where he may face additional charges,” police said.
The Portland Police Bureau says the investigation is continuing.
