Outraged shopper captures pregnant woman and her son begging for money on a street corner... before driving off in a new $50,000 MERCEDES

This is the shocking moment a shopper watched a pregnant woman and her young son beg for money - before getting into a Mercedes Benz and driving away.

Melissa Smith, from San Diego, Califoia, had witnessed the expectant mother and her child panhandling outside Eastlake Village Center every weekend for the past two weeks.

Each time, they would hold a sign reading, 'Please help', and would receive money from dozens of shoppers. 'Lots of people gave them money,' Ms Smith said. 'Probably five people in five minutes.'

But this week, Ms Smith was putting gas into her car when she saw the pair leave their panhandling spot and meet up with the woman's boyfriend - before driving away in a dark-colored Mercedes.

'I noticed they grabbed their little boy and they got into a Mercedes-Benz,' she told KGTV. 'I thought, "Wow, a Mercedes-Benz. It's not even used - it's not old. It's a new Benz."'

 The car appears to be a Mercedes E320, which retails new for $51,000 - minimum - and up to $100,000

In outrage, Ms Smith immediately stopped pumping gas, climbed into her own car and followed the Mercedes down the road, while snapping photos of the luxury vehicle and its license plate.

'Lo and beyond they were in front of us,' she said. 'Here they are counting money, laughing and their little boy is not in a car seat or seat belt. He's all the way in the front seat with them.'

Ride home: This week, Ms Smith was pumping gas into her car when she saw the pair leave their begging spot and meet up with the woman's partner - before driving away in a dark-colored Mercedes Benz (pictured)

Caught on camera: Ms Smith took this photo of the car as it drove toward a shopping plaza on Bonita Road

Astonishingly, Ms Smith watched the car tu into a nearby shopping plaza on Bonita Road, before the pregnant woman got out, grabbed the sign and started begging again.

As shoppers reached into their pockets to help her, Ms Smith started taking more photos of the woman, prompting the beggar to start shouting at her. She later sent the photos to KGTV. 

According to the news station, the Mercedes's license plate number is registered to a woman with an Escondidio apartment complex address, where rent costs around $2,500 a month.

Residents at the complex said the people the station was looking for had recently moved and a forwarding address could not be obtained. 

Police said the trio have not been reported by anyone else since Ms Smith's encounter. It is believed that they have not been detained nor questioned by officers.

The woman, her partner and the boy thought to be her son have not been identified.