A teenage mother has been accused of giving her baby to a stranger at a bus stop in Texas, USA, because she no longer wanted the child.
At around 10:45 p.m. local time on Sunday, Sept. 13, Karla Ibarra approached Jennifer Benavides at a bus stop in downtown San Antonio, asking to use her phone, KSAT 12 and Fox San Antonio reported.
The situation took an unexpected turn when Ibarra, 18, allegedly then handed her infant son to Benavides.
“Very beautiful baby. Handsome. 1 month old,” Benavides recalled of the child to KSAT 12. “So, she’s like, ‘Well, do you want him? I’m going to give him away. I’m going to give him to somebody.’”
“She begins handing me his birth certificate, his Medicaid, his Social Security card,” Benavides added to the outlet.
Ibarra left the baby with the stranger because she no longer wanted him, the outlets reported, citing the San Antonio Police Department (SAPD).
According to KSAT 12, Benavides tried to get help from a friend who lives nearby when she realized that Ibarra was determined to give the infant away.
They both went to the friend’s house, and Ibarra then left in an Uber without her son.
Ibarra was arrested after she later returned to the area, and her son was placed in the care of other relatives, Child Protective Services confirmed to KSAT 12.
“I can’t take any credit for that. God just put me at the right place and the right time,” Benavides told KSAT 12. “It’s upsetting to know that even with all the resources that we have out there that someone would do this.”
Jennifer Benavides
Ibarra has since been charged with abandoning and endangering a child with intent to return, the San Antonio Express News reported, citing Bexar County Court records.
A judge has set Ibarra’s bail at $7,000.
Texas’ Safe Haven Law, also known as the Baby Moses Law, was introduced in 1999.
It allows parents to anonymously and legally leave their unharmed newborn at a designated safe location without legal repercussions.
The infant must be 60 days old or younger to be left at locations, including fire stations, EMS stations and hospitals. The baby must be physically handed to an employee, unless using a Safe Baby box.