8-year-old saves herself and younger brother from kidnapper minutes before it's too late

August 31, 2018 | by Sarthak Parajulee

A little girl showed remarkable composure by remembering what her father had taught her for emergency situations.

8-year-old Malaiah Cole saved herself and her 3-year-old brother from getting kidnapped across the Mexico border by remembering to dial 911 on an emergency cell phone her father had given her.

According to Little Things, San Diego's Rodney Cole, their father, had left the children in the car to quickly get some hair supplies for Malaiah. He left the car and the air conditioning on while the kids waited for him in the backseat.

A few minutes a later, a female stranger saw the car with its engine running and two kids inside. She quickly opened the doors and sat down on the driver's seat.

She headed out straight toward the U.S.-Mexico border from there before Rodney could realize what was happening.

When he did eventually notice what was happening, it was already too late. The car was already away as he went through the traffic on foot to stop his car and save his kids.

From the backseat of the car, Malaiah watched helplessly as her father ran into a state of panic and even managed to bang on the car.

But the kidnapper was not troubled by this. She pulled up the windows and rode away, ignoring the father's anguish and Malaiah's pleas.

That was when Malaiah remembered about the cell phone that her father had given her for emergencies. According to a witness, the kidnapper was actually only minutes away from crossing the border, when the little girl remembered to dial 911.

She called the emergency services and told them that they were being kidnapped. The female then tried to snatch the phone away from Malaiah but she bravely moved away and kept talking on the phone.

The kidnapped eventually managed to threaten the young girl into handing over the phone, but the police had already identified their location by then.