Clerk: Baby Being Fed Coffee Was Tipoff In Abduction Search
HUNTINGTON BEACH (CBSLA.com) — Officials say a 6-month-old girl abducted by her grandmother in Orange County has been found safe in Arizona.
An Amber Alert was issued after relatives reported Laylani Mosley missing from her Huntington Beach home shortly after 9 a.m., according to police.
Mosley's mother brought Laylani to visit her grandmother, 57-year-old Carolyn Ferguson. She took a nap at Ferguson's home and woke up to find Ferguson and the baby were gone.
The mother contacted police because she was concerned that Ferguson had a history of mental illness and needs medication.
The family had no idea where Ferguson took the baby.
And then a call came in shortly before 7 p.m. from a gas station outside Phoenix.
The gas station clerk told police she saw a woman with a baby was acting erratically.
"The first thing I noticed was that she was in a size 4 or 5 diaper, way too big," clerk Karin Atkins said.
"[Ferguson] went to the cappuccino machine and filled it with cappuccino and then poured in strawberry milk in it and shook it up," before giving it to the baby.
When Maricopa County Sheriff's deputies arrived they realized the woman was Ferguson and the baby was the subject of an Amber Alert.
Laylani reportedly was in good condition.
The grandmother was taken into custody.
Laylani's family say they're grateful to the clerk for contacting authorities and helping bring their baby back home.
Officials say given Ferguson's mental state they don't yet know whether they'll file charges against her.