A 27-year-old woman was arrested after she kidnapped a neighbour’s three-month-old baby who she had been entrusted with watching while the mum was at the store.
According to the police, the baby had been missing since 2nd December, after the mother left her in the care of the woman living next door in Sao Paulo, in Brazil.
After leaving her daughter in her neighbour’s care, the mum, also not named, had gone shopping at a local store.
However, she was informed by another resident that the neighbour, who was not named, left the house and was last seen with the baby on the street.
The mother said she returned to the house, saw the neighbour sitting in front of the property with the daughter in her arms, and asked her to cover the baby’s head before returning to her shopping.
But when she returned again, the woman and her baby were nowhere to be found.
The property was ransacked, and the baby’s bottle, as well as diapers and the child’s birth certificate, were also missing.
She then searched for the neighbour and her child but could not find them. She then reported the child’s disappearance to the police.
On Sunday morning (3rd), police were informed, through a tip-off, that the missing child had been spotted and she was later found after a police team went to the address and discovered the woman with the baby.
When approached, she claimed that the mother had handed the child over to her to take care of.
According to the responding officers, the baby did not have apparent injuries or signs of abuse.
They then took the woman and the child to the 8th Police District. The mother went to the unit and identified the baby, who was returned to her.
According to the police report, the police authority ordered the woman’s arrest for the kidnapping of a minor under 18 and false imprisonment.
Police also requested her preventive detention from the court.
During the interrogation, police said she remained silent.
