Man who stole truck with toddler inside, causing Amber Alert, sentenced to 5 years in prison

INDIANAPOLIS — The Indianapolis man who entered a plea agreement after being charged connection to stealing a truck with a one-year-old child inside on the city's east side in September, will spend five years in prison.

Gonzalo Mondragon Jr, 35, pleaded guilty to one charge of criminal confinement where the victim is under 14 years old, one charge of auto theft and one charge of resisting law enforcement in December.

On Friday, Mondragon was sentenced to five years for confinement, two years for auto theft and two years for resisting law enforcement. The sentencing will be served concurrently — meaning Mondragon will spend five years in prison.

According to court documents, Mondragon was seen on surveillance video exiting a Chevy Equinox and getting into a running Nissan Frontier in the parking lot of the Shell gas station near the intersection of 34th Street and Emerson Avenue. The Nissan was running in the gas station parking lot with a one-year-old child inside as their mother was inside the gas station.

An Amber Alert and wide search area were put into place in the aftermath. The child was eventually located by a construction worker in Speedway and was unharmed, according to court documents.

After the conclusion of the Amber Alert, IMPD patrolmen and officers continued their search for the stolen vehicle.

According to court documents, an IMPD working on a crash investigation in the 1600 block of Rural Street witnessed the vehicle with matching plates drive by. After following the vehicle, the driver later identified to be Mondragon sped away leading to a pursuit.

After the pursuit was terminated, officers located the vehicle unoccupied in the 2500 block of 25th Street. Approximately .7 miles away from the vehicle, Mondragon was located and taken into custody, according to court documents.