Newborn abducted from Delhi hospital; CCTV footage shows unidentified woman carrying away infant

Delhi: A three-day-old boy was allegedly abducted by an unidentified woman from the neonatal ward of Dr Baba Saheb Ambedkar Hospital in Rohini on Tuesday, triggering a massive search operation, officials said.

CCTV footage from the hospital shows the woman carrying an infant in her arms while leaving the premises, they said, adding that interstate borders are being secured to prevent the accused from fleeing with the child.

A PCR call was received around 9 am at the North Rohini police station regarding the alleged kidnapping of a newborn from the hospital, police said in a statement.

“The complainant, identified as Sahin, a resident of Narela, told police she was admitted to the hospital on February 12 and delivered a male child on February 14,” the statement read.

During her stay at the labour ward, an unidentified woman, aged around 30 years, frequently approached her and struck up conversations, gradually gaining her confidence.

On February 17 around 5 am, the woman allegedly took the newborn from Sahin on the pretext of feeding him milk. “Believing her, the mother handed over the baby. She later fell asleep. When Sahin woke up around 8 am, she found that both the woman and her baby were missing from the ward. She immediately alerted her husband and a PCR call was placed,” police said.

Based on the complainant’s statement, an FIR was registered at North Rohini police station under Section 137(2) (kidnapping) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita and investigation was initiated, they said.

Multiple teams have been formed to trace the accused woman and recover the infant. CCTV footage from various locations inside the hospital, including entry and exit points, corridors and nearby roads, is being examined to track the movement of the suspect.

Preliminary scrutiny of footage has revealed a woman matching the description given by the complainant carrying a newborn in her arms while leaving the premises.

Hospital staff, security guards, ward attendants are being questioned to determine how the woman gained access to the ward and whether she posed as a relative or attendant.

Police are also verifying hospital visitor records and checking whether the suspect had visited the facility in the days prior to the incident.

Alerts have been circulated across neighbouring districts and at state borders to prevent the accused from fleeing with the child, police said, adding that efforts are underway to identify and apprehend the accused at the earliest.