FORT WAYNE, Ind. – A 5-month-old Illinois boy allegedly kidnapped by his baby sitter has been found safe in Indiana after federal marshals traced a call to a home where the baby sitter was staying with the child.
Cortez Rose of Madison, Ill., was recovered Tuesday afternoon by the U.S. Marshals Service at a Fort Wayne home along with his alleged abductor, 17-year-old Danielle Medina.
A missing-child alert was issued for the boy Sunday, a day after Medina vanished with the boy.
The boy was recovered after marshals traced a call from a confidential informant to Medina, said Madison Police Chief Steven Shelby.
He said Medina and the boy were found at a residence where 13 other people were staying.
"The baby seems to be in excellent health," Shelby said. "I could hear the baby screaming in the background over the phone. It was music to my ears."
A telephone message was left Wednesday with U.S. Marshal Don Slazinik seeking comment on the family's plans to pick up the boy.
Medina has been charged by the Madison County State's Attorney's Office with one count of aggravated kidnapping. She could face additional charges.
Cortez's mother, Makeela R. King, 16, visited the Madison, Ill., Police Department late Tuesday afternoon with friends and family, making arrangements to pick up her son, who was in protective custody.
King said she was grateful to those who searched for Cortez.
"I thought I would never get him back and that would be the last time I saw him," she said. "I'm gonna kiss him, hug him and talk to him all day. He's not going to understand me, but I'll tell him what happened: that I almost lost him, that I'm glad we found him."
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