A woman from Ohio allegedly posed as an employee from Child Protective Services and kidnapped a 3-week-old baby girl from her home. On March 16, Sapphire McDougleh, 21, purportedly posed as a CPS employee in Canton, entering the apartment and showing a name tag to the child's mother, then leaving with the infant.
The child's mother frantically called 911 the next morning, when she became suspicious of McDougleh, according to WCTV. CPS confirmed that the agency did not employ McDougleh, and the search began. McDougleh was found hours after the 911 call with 21-year-old Brandon Savage. The question now is how did it happen?
McDougleh entered the home with what seemed to be official paperwork, according to the parents of the infant.
During a 911 call about 4 a.m. Friday, the baby's mother told dispatchers that McDougleh appeared legitimate. According to the Canton Repository, she appeared at the home in the 600 block of Alan Page Drive SE and allegedly forced her way inside around 8:30 a.m. Thursday. The mother told police McDougleh wore a name tag and reportedly knew the child's health information; the father said she had "crude paperwork."
Police forwarded the call to CPS.
When the initial call came in from the infant's parents, police forwarded the information to CPS. The infant's father told the dispatcher the family did not have a caseworker with CPS, per WKYC. The agency confirmed the woman was not an employee, and police were dispatched to the scene.
"Somebody came by, left me with all three of my three sons, took my daughter, didn't give me a phone number. It's been almost 16 hours," the mother said during the 911 call.
She reported that the woman allegedly only took her daughter and left her three sons in the home.
McDougleh is the victim's neighbor.
WKYC reported that McDougleh lives just down the street from the family's home. On the day of the alleged kidnapping, McDougleh and Savage took off with the infant and were tracked using a license plate reader. Within hours of the call on Friday, deputies apprehended the couple in Coshocton County, nearly 65 miles from Canton.
Police praised the parents for trusting themselves.
Canton Police Chief John Gabbard told WCTV that police were seconds away from issuing an Amber Alert when deputies found the infant. She was not harmed.
"At least in this circumstance, we can start with the foundation that we have a safe child," he said. Gabbard also emphasized that the parents were right to contact authorities, and he cautioned others to trust their gut instincts.
"Don't take anyone's word for anything, unless you have a law enforcement officer or paperwork that's signed by a judge that is legitimate," Gabbard said. "It's always OK to ask questions and to verify information."
The pair face felony charges.
McDougleh was charged with felony kidnapping, and Savage was charged with complicity to commit kidnapping. The pair are each being held on a $750,000 bond.
According to a 2019 US Department of Justice report, between 52 and 306 children were abducted by strangers in the US that year alone. Of those children, 8% were killed.
