Woman who abandoned baby in NYC subway station detained, police say

NEW YORK -- A woman who allegedly abandoned a baby girl in a bustling midtown Manhattan subway station Monday has been detained and the infant was in the care of New York City's Administration for Child Services Monday night, city police told CBS News.

The woman, 20, is believed to be the baby's mother and was being questioned at a precinct house, police said.

No charges had been filed as of early Tuesday.

Sources said she was telling investigators she couldn't take care of the baby anymore and that's why she left her on the platform.

The baby is 10 months old.

The mother moved to New York recently, the sources added.

The infant was found abandoned at the 59th Street-Columbus Circle subway station, reports CBS New York.

Just before noon, a woman was on a train with a baby in a stroller, police said. When the train arrived at the station, the woman allegedly pushed the stroller onto the platform. The doors closed and the train left the station.

The baby girl, who police said is 6 to 7 months old, was taken to a hospital for evaluation.

The infant was spotted alone on the platform by a 33-year-old woman who waited about 20 minutes with the child for the woman to return, sources told CBS New York.

The woman never returned.

Police released a photo of the girl Monday night holding her bottle in the red stroller with white polka dots that she was abandoned in.

Police said there were no apparent signs of trauma. The baby had a bandage on her hand and a slight rash, but was otherwise unhurt, sources said.

The child was out of the hospital late Monday.

Authorities said it's unclear whether the woman intentionally pushed the stroller from the subway car.

But parents such as Jomal Jacques were left speechless, regardless.

Commuters were shocked that someone could put a baby in harm's way at a subway station, where anything could have happened.

"I can't even be away a couple hours away from my son, and for you to do that, that's -- I don't know. I don't even know. I can't really say anything about that," he remarked to CBS New York.

"I hope that child has no memory of this horror story," said Irene Kestanuk, who noted the outcome could have been far worse.

"Thank God the child wasn't pushed into the tracks," she told CBS New York.

"Anything could have happened to the infant)," added commuter Lindi Wemangondo. "Somebody might have kidnapped the baby - anything."