Suspects steal vehicle of woman after she tried to help after crash in Perry Co.

An intended act of kindness resulted in a carjacking on Interstate 55 on Wednesday in Perry County, Missouri.

A Perryville, Missouri, woman traveling northbound on I-55 stopped to assist two adults with a small child after an apparent crash.

Stephanie Moll, 37, put the child in the backseat of her SUV to shield her from the cold.

While Moll fastened the child's seat belt, according to Perry County Sheriff Gary Schaaf, the two adults entered the front of Moll's SUV and drove off. The vehicle ran over one of Moll's legs and broke it.

Moll's SUV was later found in Mississippi County, Arkansas, and authorities arrested 22-year-old Victoria Smith of Memphis, Tennessee.

Schaaf said his office is trying to identify the other person involved in the crime.

"We got a good idea of who it is," Schaaf said Friday. "We just need to get the particulars. We'll probably be getting a warrant for that person shortly."

Schaaf said his office received a call Wednesday at 4:26 p.m. about an accident on northbound I-55 at the 132 mile marker. Deputies found Moll when they arrived at the scene and contacted Ste. Genevieve County and state Highway Patrol authorities.

An officer saw Moll's vehicle in Ste. Genevieve County, according to Schaaf. The officer tried to catch up to the vehicle but lost it in traffic on I-270 in the St. Louis area.

Authorities located Moll's vehicle the next day in Mississippi County, Arkansas. The vehicle crashed after a short pursuit.

"They were able to get one Black female [Smith] out of the vehicle, and she ended up admitting she was involved in that [the carjacking]," Schaaf said.

Schaaf added that the suspects' vehicle on I-55 was reported stolen in Memphis on Jan. 20.

Smith was booked in the Mississippi County Jail on Thursday afternoon and faces four charges, according to Schaaf: a Class A felony for vehicle hijacking, a Class D felony for second-degree assault, a Class D felony of endangering the welfare of a child and a Class D felony for receiving stolen property.