Ward 3 Councilmember Mary Cheh says she was just stopping into her neighborhood bakery Bread Furst for a brief moment when her dark blue 2015 Subaru Outback was stolen earlier today. Nobody was harmed, and her phone was apparently tossed out of the car and recovered by a helpful stranger.
Looking at surveillance video posted on Twitter, it appears Cheh’s car was parked out front on Connecticut Ave. NW. The suspect did not appear to struggle to enter the vehicle. A spokesperson for Cheh could not confirm if the car was unlocked or running when Cheh went into the bakery.
DC Councilmember Mary Cheh’s car was stolen from in front of a business on the 4400 Block of Connecticut Ave. NW DC this afternoon. Thankfully she is unharmed and OK. @fox5dc pic.twitter.com/hQZnnkKrp7
— C on the scene (@Conthescene) December 17, 2020
“These things can happen in an instant, they are crimes of opportunity, so I urge everyone to stay alert and take precautions —like double checking that your car is locked, never leave it running, and using anti-theft devices,” Cheh tweeted.
It’s unclear whether the car-jackers know they’re in possession of a DC Councilmember’s vehicle, given that Cheh’s car has pink breast cancer awareness plates. Her councilmember plates are inside the car.
Jane is a Chicago transplant who now calls Cleveland Park her home. Before joining Washingtonian, she wrote for Smithsonian Magazine and the Chicago Sun-Times. She is a graduate of Northwestern University, where she studied journalism and opera.
