Parents who kidnapped newborn in France believed to have fled to Belgium

The French Justice ministry has asked Belgian authorities to help recover a newborn baby kidnapped by his parents from a hospital in Aulnay-sous-Bois. The child was born prematurely and requires constant medical care.

The parents of Santiago, a 17-day-old premature baby, are suspected of kidnapping their child from the maternity hospital in the French commune. An abduction alert has been issued. France suspects that the parents travelled to Belgium with their infant son, the Bobigny prosecutor said.

"Santiago, a newborn male child, 17 days old, blonde hair, dressed in a brown T-shirt, size 6 months, and white velvet pyjamas, was abducted from the maternity ward of the Robert Ballanger hospital in Aulnay-sous-Bois, Seine-Saint-Denis, between 23 and 23.30 on 21 October 2024," the ministry said in a press release. 

"The suspects are the parents: a 23-year-old man wearing dark jeans and a white T-shirt, a light blue denim jacket and a black coat, and a 25-year-old woman wearing a white pullover, a light blue sleeveless jacket and a green skirt," the press release said.

^{© PHOTO HANDOUT / MINISTERE DE L'INTERIEUR / AFP}