World
October 23, 2024 20:20
bergen - The search for the parents of newborn baby Santiago intensifies as more details come to light. Authorities are puzzled by the parents' actions as the baby, born premature and in need of special care, remains missing.
The search for the parents of newborn baby Santiago continues with full force, as authorities intensify efforts to locate the couple. Both France and Belgium have mobilized all resources in concern for the life of the eighteen-day-old, premature baby.
The baby, who requires constant care in an incubator at a temperature of 37 degrees as a precaution, is in grave danger while on the run with his parents. Every hour without proper care is a lost hour, a race against time. The first 12 hours were crucial according to French doctors, but the baby has now been missing for nearly 48 hours.
The police are baffled: what drove the parents to deprive their child of necessary premature care? However, it has emerged that the parents' criminal past - both belonging to the Romani community - may play a significant role. The mother has a history of drug offenses, and the father of a violent theft. Furthermore, as reported by French newspaper Le Figaro, the parents no longer had custody of the child, which could explain the abduction.
The chain of events began on Monday evening, between 11:00 PM and 11:30 PM, at the Robert-Ballanger hospital in Aulnay-sous-Bois, a town north of Paris. Surveillance footage captured a young couple leaving the neonatology department. Alarms in the hospital sounded when the baby's heart rate and breathing sensors were disconnected from the incubator.
A nurse, perhaps unsuspecting, questioned the couple in the hospital corridor. Would they return in time to feed their baby? The pair nodded in agreement, but their intentions were clear: they had no intention of returning to the hospital.
The 25-year-old mother had given birth to Santiago just over two weeks earlier. Santiago was born almost two months prematurely and required monitoring of his breathing and heart rate while in the hospital. Special feeding was also necessary for the child.
However, the parents, both well-known to the authorities, seemingly abducted the child in a large black sports bag. The nurse who saw them did not question this act. 'The nursing staff often see parents passing by with bags containing clothes for their baby,' explained the hospital director.
The French police promptly launched an extensive search. An 'abduction alert' was issued on Tuesday to alert all citizens to be on the lookout for the couple's Audi. This emergency alert, used only six times in almost twenty years in France, reflects the critical condition of the child.
On Tuesday evening, the Belgian police were also requested to spare no effort. The Child Alert, utilized only twice in Belgium, was activated as well. 'Because it's a matter of life and death,' emphasized Alain Remue of the Belgian police. Signs were posted on highways, in train stations, on buses, and in shops to be vigilant for baby Santiago.
The search yielded results on Wednesday. The parents were sighted on Tuesday at B&B Hotel Mons, near the Bergen train station. Surveillance footage showed them leaving the premises around 11:00 AM. Their room was searched, leading the police to conclude that baby Santiago was still with them.
However, the child's well-being remains uncertain. In Charleroi, about a forty-five-minute drive from Bergen, the couple's car was discovered on Wednesday morning. But there was no sign of the parents and the child.
Authorities consider the possibility that they may have been picked up by other individuals. The French authorities have apprehended five suspects from the parents' circle, including two relatives who accompanied them to Belgium. They are currently being interrogated. Yet, the trail to baby Santiago remains elusive, sparking fears for the child's life.
The public prosecutor's office in Bergen emphasized on Wednesday afternoon the need for the judiciary to work 'calmly and swiftly.' 'Because a young child's life is at stake.' No further information will be released to allow the investigation to proceed unhindered.