Mom of child with special needs pleads for return of van with medical equipment

The mother of a child with special needs is urging a thief to return her stolen van which contains important medical equipment for the toddler.

Marina Condon has two little girls who are 2 and 4 years old. Her youngest, Arianna, has a medical condition called spinal macular atrophy, which prevents her from walking.

The van is equipped with important medical resources the family uses on the road and leaves inside the vehicle.

"Who would want a minivan with two car seats, medical equipment, a stroller in there, like, who would even take that?" said Condon. "And I had a handicap placard that belongs to her for the parking [that] was in there."

Condon parked the van just outside the Peabody Institute Library on Main Street for a few hours while she did some work, but believes someone took her keys when she left her purse unattended.

"It’s pretty scary to know that anywhere we’re not super safe, actually," Condon said. "It just kind of feels like invasion of my privacy. Normal day, going to the library. Like, who knows? You go the library, you come back out, your car is gone."

One of the devices inside the van is a cough assist, which literally helps Arianna cough.

The van, a 2017 Kia Sedona, is a lease and is how Arianna gets around with her family.

However, although the equipment is a second set, the Condon family invested thousands of dollars for the equipment when they're on the road, and to have an important back-up to what's at home.

Surveillance video from a hair salon captured what appears to be the stolen van driven out of the parking lot before returning, then finally vanishing.

"It was just so strange to see somebody actually got in and then drove away," Condon said. "Where is it now? It's my vehicle. Bring it back."

Peabody Police are investigating, but Condon isn't' concerned about filing charges. She just wants her property back with no questions asked.

"I don't care if they took it somewhere, just bring it back," Condon said. "Leave it at the mall parking lot."

Cox Media Group