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Mother says she will turn son into police after spotting him in robbery surveillance video

Posted at 1:24 PM, Dec 26, 2016
and last updated 2016-12-26 17:45:20-05

Mom is always watching and a man on Cleveland's west side is learning that the hard way.

Brenda Whitely called News 5 saying she recognized her son on our weekend newscasts in surveillance video of a gas station robbery.

"Heartbreaking. Words can't even explain," Whitely said when she realized it was him. "It's just like, 'wow. That's my kid.'"

Whitely said she knows he's struggling with drug addiction and, while they live in different states, she keeps tabs on him.

"I'm watching him and he don't know. He needs help," she said.

Whitely doesn't want to share his name but said she's been calling him nonstop since seeing the video, hoping he'd turn himself in.

"I want him to be a man...to face what he did," she said.

If he won't, she will.

"I am going to call the police," she said. "Parents can't protect their kids. If they're doing something wrong, you have to turn them in. Jail is going to save his life. I don't want to see him in jail, but it's going to save his life."