Mother Recounts Terror As Stranger Tries To Grab Away Her 10-Month-Old Baby On Queens Street
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) - A mother came face-to-face with a stranger who police say tried to abduct her baby on a Queens sidewalk.
Police say the mother was walking her 10-month-old baby in a stroller when the man approached her, reports CBS2's Andrea Grymes who spoke with her about how she was able to scare him away.
"This was really scary because it was 8:30 at night," said victim Blanca Aucanshala. "At that hour no one was around."
The Queens mom recounted what she describes as a terrifying encounter when a man she didn't know approached her and demanded she hand over her 10-month-old daughter.
"Never - I've never seen him before," said Aucanshala.
Police confirmed it happened last Thursday night near 43rd Avenue and 111th Street in the Corona neighborhood.
Aucanshala says she had picked up her daughter from the babysitter after work and was pushing her stroller, talking on the phone and walking home, when the suspect grabbed her arm.
"I need the baby," she says he told her. "Why the baby? Do you need money? Take my phone. He said 'I want the baby.' I was in shock."
The mom says she pushed him and kept walking, yelling for help. A Good Samaritan came out of nowhere and she pleaded with him not to leave her side. They walked to a nearby store to get her to safety, but the suspect followed inside.
"Please someone help me. Please call the police because this guy is going to hurt me," she said.
Aucanshala says he did leave, and workers called the police.
Investigators believe the man is in his 20s and around 5-feet, 5-inches tall.
Aucanshala hopes someone recognizes him and helps police get him off the streets.
The mother says she wasn't physically hurt but was very traumatized by what happened.
Police have released surveillance video showing the man at a business after the incident.
Anyone who has information regarding this incident is asked to call the NYPD's Crime Stoppers Hotline at 1-800-577-8477 or for Spanish, 1-888-577-4782. Tips can also be sent to the NYPDTips Twitter account or submitted online at NYPDCrimeStoppers.com.
