Security agents were able to arrest Orquídea Polanco who in nurse uniform had attempted to steal a baby from the newborn area at the San Francisco de Macoris public hospital early on Friday morning. Polanco is not a nurse.
Diario Libre reported that the woman had stolen the newborn of a Haitian woman from the San Vicente de Paúl regional university hospital in San Francisco de Macorís, in Duarte province.
The preliminary report explained that Polanco had dressed in a blue nurse uniform to gain access to the newborn area. She would have told the mother of the child that she would take the baby to give her formula. Instead, Polanco left the hospital with the child without being detected by security.
Nevertheless, the woman was apprehended when people alerted 911 as the woman ran in panic with the baby in her arms. The baby was returned to the mother, a Haitian citizen identified as Francesca Louis.
The detainee was handed over to the Public Prosecutor’s Office.
The Ministry of Public Health has acknowledged the need to enhance security in public hospitals on occasion of repeat cases of baby abductions.
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Diario Libre
Noticias SIN
20 February 2023