A Chicago family was robbed at gunpoint just outside their home in a brazen crime caught on surveillance cameras in Chicago's Beverly neighborhood last week.
The Pettiford family told NBC Chicago it all started as a routine Thursday, but things quickly changed as Michelle Pettiford and her 12-year-old daughter returned home from volleyball practice.
That's when the family said two people ran up to them while armed and demanded the keys to their car.
Police said the robbery happened around 8:45 p.m.
Frightening surveillance footage showed the armed pair pushing Pettiford to the ground as they shuffled through her purse.
"They're in my purse, they're in my purse," Pettiford can be heard telling them.
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Meanwhile, her 12-year-old daughter ran inside screaming.
"The scream ... You know, they talk about blood curdling and all that, but that coming from your daughter," said her father Jeff Pettiford. "I'll never forget that sound."
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Jeff Pettiford quickly ran outside to help his wife, but said one of the suspects then pointed a gun at his head.
"There was no fear," he said. "When they came at me and I looked at them, they weren't afraid. I'm not small. I came running directly at them and the thought wasn't, 'Oh no, let's get out of here.' It's, 'Let's turn around and potentially shoot this person.'"
Jeff Pettiford said he tried to offer them money, but they only wanted a car. So, he helped them start his Audi.
"Just press the button," he can be heard directing them in the surveillance footage.
"They couldn't figure out how to start the car. I told them how to start the car, then they wanted the key," Jeff Pettiford told NBC Chicago. "I told them where it was, they still wanted me to give it to them. It's a fab. I don't think they understood."
The pair fled the scene in their vehicle and while the family wasn't physically hurt, they said the emotional trauma from the incident has been challenging.
"My wife and daughter are getting better every day, but it's a trauma and you don't know what it's gonna do," Jeff Pettiford said. "I think a lot about my daughter and what is this going to mean a week, a month, a year, two years from now? We're seeking all the professional help that we are supposed to. There's no playbook for this outside of make sure that we're talking about it."
Chicago police said the stolen vehicle has not yet been recovered as of Wednesday and detectives are still looking for the suspects.
The Pettiford family hopes by sharing their story and the footage that it may help lead to an arrest.
Police said Area Two detectives are investigating and anyone with information can leave anonymous tips at CPDTip.com.
