Fake Baby Tied To Roof Of Tesla Isn't Funny, Say Police In Bergen County

NORTH JERSEY, NJ — So far in 2023, 12 children, mainly 2 years old or under, have died in hot cars, including a little boy who climbed into a car this past weekend and got trapped. But a practical joker in a Tesla has been pulling into mall parking lots in Bergen County with a doll tied to the car in order to videotape people's shocked reactions, police said.

The prank could be dangerous for a number of reasons, officials said.

Paramus Police Chief Robert Guidetti said that on Saturday, July 3, at 4:30 p.m., Paramus police officers were dispatched to the Paramus Park Mall in reference to a vehicle "driving through the parking lot with a baby seat occupied by an infant on the roof of the vehicle."

Officers were told that the vehicle was a white Tesla T3 with New York license plates, but it disappeared just before they arrived.

Security officers said the baby turned out to be a doll, and it was probably a prank.

"While the officer was writing the report at Paramus Park, Paramus Police Communications received calls from patrons [from] Garden State Plaza at approximately 5 p.m. reporting the same type of event with the same vehicle," the chief said.

The car had then cruised through Paramus' other major mall, but disappeared again before police could catch up.

“You will always have practical jokes that are fun and chaotic," said Guidetti, who took over as chief of the suburban Bergen County town last month. "However, this small dose of chaos that may be exciting to a few can be terrorizing and unsafe to others. The prankster should consider the consequences if a prank goes too far.”

Pranks that pull first responders away from other emergencies can put people in danger, law enforcement officials have said in the past.

And there's the possibility that such incidents may distract people from the real threat of a toddler in trouble.

"This prank is extremely hazardous to the motoring public," Guidette said, "and dangerous to the prankster depending on the reaction he gets from the bystander turned 'good doer' in our busy shopping malls. We strongly urge activities such as this 'the forgotten baby' not be done."

Sure enough, a group of New Yorkers in a car later posted a video to TikTok of mall security chasing them. A reflection in the car windshield shows part of their New York license plate.

"Wow pls be careful baby on board!!" posted one commenter.

Commenters on the Facebook page for the Paramus police were not as forgiving.

"We really have become a society of idiots," wrote one.

Cases have been documented of people forgetting their children in car seats, often when the families changed their morning routine, or one parent thought the other was taking care of the child.

In summer 2019, a New York City father of five was charged with reckless endangerment after he neglected to drop off his 1-year-old twins at day care and went to his job counseling disabled veterans in the Bronx, leaving them in the car, where they died. He has since dedicated himself to raising awareness about similar tragedies.