Fort Worth police officer describes saving kidnapped baby in ravine

A Fort Worth police sergeant who helped rescue a baby who was dumped in a ravine described the moment as “just pure emotion” and said he “was just elated” when officers found the kidnapped child.

A thief jumped in the mother’s car in a residential neighborhood in north Fort Worth and sped off with the baby still inside the vehicle Monday night, police have said.

A little more than an hour later, Sgt. Ronnie Chau said, officers found the car and the suspect, but “we got really worried” because the child was no longer in the car. The suspect told police he dumped the baby at a ravine filled with trash off a dead-end street.

Chau told reporters Wednesday that he and the other officers involved were lucky to find the baby because it was getting dark during their search. The ravine was about half a mile away from where the car was located, according to Chau.

“We found the baby!” one officer announced over the radio when they spotted the boy.

“I was just delighted,” said Chau at the press conference when recalling how he felt once the baby was safe.

The sergeant is a father. “I remember losing my child at grocery store for like less than 30 seconds and I was freaking out myself,” he said. “And I can’t imagine a parent losing for an hour and 20 minutes not knowing where the baby is.”

The baby was reunited with his family, apparently unharmed. MedStar also examined the baby when he was rescued.

When the baby when was returned to the mother, “She was very happy. She was crying the whole time. Happiness,” Chau said.

The suspect, 25-year-old Elliot Cain Reyes, is in jail and faces charges of kidnapping, attempted capital murder of a person under 10 years old, abandonment or endangerment of a child, and auto theft, according to police records. He was also wanted on an out-of-town warrant. Reyes remained in the Tarrant County Jail on Thursday with bond set at $68,000.

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