Upper Darby police say 29-year-old Chris Tucker of West Philadelphia is in the Delaware County Prison after allegedly attempting to kidnap Shamir.
It was around 7:00 p.m. Wednesday when police say Tucker lured the child to his car from inside a corner deli, just 20 yards from the boy's home, with cookies and candy.
Shamir was rescued when his parents came out searching after he did not routinely return within a couple of minutes from buying his daily snack.
Shamir's stepmother, Mikala Mitchell, explains what happened next, saying, "When I walked over and looked, like I said, I couldn't see on the side windows because it was tint. So that's why I looked in the front windshield, and I saw him sitting in the front seat with the guy in the driver's seat."
Eric Thomas, Shamir's father, tells us, "I just seen my son in that car. I just snapped. And then the guy tried to, you know, he tried to charge at me. I just snapped on him. That was it."
Witnesses say Tucker was halted at the moment he began taking off in his car.
The crime scene is less than two blocks from police headquarters. By the time cops arrived, Chris Tucker had been subdued.
Upper Darby Police Superintendent Mike Chitwood explains, "The little boy's father grabbed Tucker out of the car and proceeded to pummel him, thump him up. And when police arrived Tucker was laying on the ground, the father was standing over top of him."
Tucker has a long criminal record dating back to 2005 for drugs, theft, assault, and dui.
In this case tragedy was narrowly avoided by mere seconds.
"I was defending my son. My family was out here. Like, I was out for blood," Eric said.
Police say Tucker was "whacked out" when they hauled him in. If convicted on the kidnapping charge he could be in prison for many decades.
