A custodian at the church reportedly heard a baby crying in the distance, eventually finding the child with its umbilical cord still connected.
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The baby was taken to Jamaica Hospital in Queens, where he weighed in at about five pounds and was measured at 17 inches long.
The footage from a nearby convenience store shows the mother buying towels before the child was found. The baby was found swaddled in the towels by custodian Jose Moran.
Police said that did not happen in this case, which led investigators to begin searching for the mother.
“We’re just happy the child is OK and it was placed in a good spot where it was found very quickly and wasn’t left outside”, Cerni said.
– A woman who left her newborn baby in a nativity scene at a Queens church on Monday has been found and will not be charged, according to the Queens district attorney. “It would make a great Christmas miracle”. “He was breathing; had a good color”, Cisneros said.
NY has a so-called safe haven law that says a newborn can be dropped off anonymously at a church, hospital, police or fire station without fear of prosecution. “She did not treat the baby in a way that was going to be harmed”.
Charges can be waived if the infant is left with an appropriate person or in a suitable location and the parent promptly informs an appropriate person of its location.
The discovery amazed parishioners, the parish secretary said.
“The handsome thing is that this woman found in this church – which is supposed to be a home for those in need – this home for her child”, he said.
He added several members of his church have already expressed interest in the baby.
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Bishop Octavio Cisneros of the Archdiocese of Brooklyn and Queens said not knowing the mother’s circumstances, he was relieved she chose to leave the child in the safety of the church. “They don’t call priests fathers for nothing”.
