BATON ROUGE - Police arrested a man for kidnapping and theft of a motor vehicle after he allegedly stole a car with the victim's children inside.

The Baton Rouge Police Department said while the victim went into a store on October 31, 2024, an unknown person later identified as James Merritt, entered the driver's seat of her vehicle and drove away with her children inside. After leaving the store, two other people went into the vehicle before the people abandoned the vehicle.

An unknown good Samaritan stopped and assisted the victims.

Police said DNA from a partially used cigarette as well as photo lineups and cell phone records established probable cause for Merritt.

Merritt was booked for simple kidnapping and theft of a motor vehicle. He had a previous criminal history including armed robbery.