Nightmare With a Happy Ending : Police, friends, media and even strangers play roles in recovering a kidnaped baby

Thanks to police, friends, television stations and a stranger’s willingness to get involved, a Santa Ana couple who lived a parent’s nightmare for a week have their abducted child safely back home. A scary story has turned out to have a happy ending.

An aunt took Steffany Zamora, 4 months old, to South Coast Plaza to have the baby’s picture taken. Accompanying the aunt was a woman who had met the Zamoras only days earlier, when she went door to door telling people she was looking for a baby-sitter for her child.

Police said the acquaintance sent the aunt off on an errand at the mall and disappeared with the child. That set off days of anguish for the family. It also prompted an impressive effort by police, friends and neighbors of the Zamoras to track down the kidnaper.

Even strangers joined the Zamoras’ friends in passing out flyers and canvassing neighborhoods. English- and Spanish-language newspapers and television stations reported on the search and the flyer. A woman in Delano, an agricultural community north of Bakersfield, saw a broadcast about the infant, recognized her and the woman claiming the child was her daughter, and notified police. The tipster, who asked not to be identified, went the extra mile, taking police to a house where the woman was staying with the baby. The Zamoras were flown to Delano for a reunion with Steffany, and Maria Louisa Martinez was arrested on suspicion of kidnaping and car theft. Police who announced the recovery of the child were visibly moved, underscoring the impact of incidents involving children.

The case was an unfortunate reminder of parents’ needs to be aware not just of who is watching their children but even who may be tagging along. The days when most people regarded new acquaintances as non-threatening belong to a more innocent time. Yet this incident is evidence that even in times of turmoil and terror, there is goodness as well.