San Jose police said Wednesday they have charged three people with kidnapping a three-month-old baby who was taken from an apartment Monday afternoon while his grandmother unloaded groceries from a car outside. The baby was found alive and unharmed on Tuesday.
Jose Roman Portillo, Jesse Guadalupe Ramirez and Baldomeo Sandoval have been arrested and charged with kidnapping, conspiracy to kidnap, kidnapping children and breaking into a home, San Jose police said on Wednesday. San Jose Police Department spokesman Sergeant Christian Camarillo said the allegations could change as the department learns more about what happened.
Baby Brandon Alexis Cuelar was taken to hospital as a “precautionary measure” on Tuesday after more than 20 hours of searching, police said.
Cuelar was found just a day after he was reported missing. San Jose police said Monday that he was being watched by his grandmother while his mother was at work, CBS San Francisco reported. The grandmother had taken the baby to the apartment when he returned from grocery shopping. She went back to her car to get more groceries, but when she got back inside, Cuelar was gone.
Portillo, Ramirez and Sandoval are shown in images from the San Jose Police Department. San Jose Police Department
San Jose police posted on Twitter images and videos of a suspected man who was seen entering the residence and leaving with the baby in what looked like a basket covered with a blanket. Camarillo said earlier this week that the suspect, who has since been identified as Portillo, brought a baby basket to the apartment, suggesting the abduction was planned.
Camarillo said on Wednesday that Ramirez was a “family friend” of the grandmother and was with her during the abduction. He said detectives believed she was in contact with Portillo when the abduction took place. Her arrest came after Camarillo said on Tuesday that “discrepancies” in what she told police raised “considerable suspicion”.
Camarillo said Sandoval played “some role” in the abduction, but gave no details. The motive for the abduction remains under investigation.
** Kidnapping incident **
Employees are currently working on the incident. The man you see in these surveillance footage entered a residence in block 1000 of Elm St.
He left with a 3-month-old baby. The family does not recognize this suspect. pic.twitter.com/BJ0R44JOP2
– Media Relations of the San Jose Police (@SJPD_PIO) April 26, 2022
Early Monday night, the neighborhood where the abduction took place is full of San Jose police. Police said Monday that his mother was at their headquarters and providing information on the case. The baby’s father is currently in prison.
“We currently have all the available resources not only in the field, but also here, in the police department that is working on this case,” Camarillo said on Monday.
THREATENED MISSING COUNCIL – Santa Clara County Last seen: Elm Street and Vermont Street, San Jose @ SanJosePD, IF YOU SEE, CALL 9-1-1 pic.twitter.com/zAuu8No2TX
– CHP – Signals (@CHPAlerts) April 26, 2022
Authorities have asked anyone living in the area to check their surveillance cameras for a video of about 1 p.m., which may have captured the suspects.
Police also noted that no amber signal had been issued in the case, as authorities did not have a description of the vehicle or a registration number to include in the signal.
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