Derek Gotchie: Minnesota dad heroically saves his 4 toddlers who were kidnapped during carjacking
MINNEAPOLIS, MINNESOTA: A father from Minneapolis, Minnesota saved his children after they were kidnapped by a suspect during a carjacking incident on Wednesday, November 30. Derek Gotchie, the brave father of four children reportedly used a stolen vehicle the suspect abandoned, according to the Minneapolis Police Department. According to Minneapolis police, Burnsville resident Derek drove a car that the suspect left behind—a car that was later found to be stolen—to find his own car, which still had his four children in the back seat.
At around 8.40 pm on Wednesday night, November 30, Derek and his wife, Deanah Gotchie, were reportedly unloading belongings from the family's car while parked next to a friend's house around the 800 block of Russell Avenue North. Derek briefly got out of the car to close the back door as Deanah was shifting the belongings when the alleged thief allegedly leaped out of the stolen SUV and broke into the family's car, according to the police. Deanah recalled the incident, saying “I turn around, and I’m like, ‘What?' I look out the door, and I see our tail lights leaving.” Derek told about his pursuit to KSTP, adding, “I didn’t know what to do. I’m jumping in there, I’m going after my kids.”
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The pursuit ended quickly and near Penn and Plymouth Avenues, a few streets away, Derek caught up with the suspect. He added that the suspect stopped to allow a car pass, and the father pounced on the opportunity as soon as he went back onto the road. “I just hit the back of my truck and pushed him into this alleyway to pin him against this fence,” Derek remarked. The truck stopped after rear-ending the car slowly, and the suspect got out and fled, leaving the children behind. No one was hurt, but the family's truck's rear bumper was damaged due to the incident.
All the children were repotedly under the age of five and were unharmed. Deanah arrived at the site eventually, and the police informed her of what had occurred. She recalled of her conversation with the officers, saying, “I asked [the officer], ‘Did you find them?’ He was like, ‘Your husband did.’ I’m like, ‘What are you talking about my husband did?' I got there, and I hear the story, I’m not surprised at all, I’m not surprised at all. I’m like, ‘Yup, that sounds like my husband.'”
The case is currently under investigation, according to the Minneapolis Police Department and there have been no arrests made so far. Meanwhile, a GoFundMe page was created for the family to cover the costs of repairing their vehicle. The statement on the page reads, “We’d like to make them as comfortable as possible while dealing with this traumatic experience. Anything will help; they’ll be able to cover insurance expenses, get any help they might need for processing trauma, buy groceries, make the kiddos as comfy as possible, and because they’re going to be missing work while processing this, etc.”