On Monday, a woman who allegedly kidnapped an infant from his mother's room at a hospital in Al Qaseem governorate was arrested by police. The newborn was also found and returned to the hospital, a spokesperson for the Al Qaseem Police, said.
The arrest comes days after the disappearance of a Saudi baby from Barida City's Children Hospital left local officials puzzled on Friday. The incident took place over the weekend, hours after the child's mother gave birth in the medical center.
In a statement on the case, health authorities in Al Qaseem said the child was not kidnapped from the center's neonatal nursery area as it was previously reported.
"The newborn was taken from his mother's hospital room during visiting hours," the statement confirmed.
The kingdom's "code pink" - a protocol that is launched whenever a similar kidnapping takes place - had been activated across the country over the weekend.
Local authorities along with the hospital where the incident took place closely worked with police to help find the child. The suspect, a woman who is said to be in her 40s, will be prosecuted accordingly.
Per local newspapers, the parents of the kidnapped baby are reportedly divorced, which is the reason why the accused woman - who comes from the father's side - took the newborn during visiting hours.
Not the first time a similar incident is reported in the kingdom
Earlier this year, a woman posing as a nurse kidnapped a newborn from a private hospital in Jeddah. Authorities managed to find the victim within 48 hours and went on to arrest the suspect.
In 2017, another newborn kidnapping stirred panic among Saudis. At the time, it was reported that a baby boy was taken from the King Khalid hospital in Saudi Arabia's Kharj governorate. The child was found abandoned outside a mosque hours later and a suspect was arrested in the case.
