Uitenhage - A woman posing as a social worker on Monday kidnapped a 12-day-old baby girl from her grandmother at Kwanobuhle township outside Uitenhage, Eastern Cape police said on Wednesday.
The bogus social worker, supposedly on a routine visit to newly-born babies, took the baby from her grandmother, saying she was going to give her milk and nappies but never returned, Inspector Marianette Olivier said.
The grandmother reported the incident to police on Tuesday.
It was the woman's fourth visit to the baby, Olivier said. She said it was routine for social workers to visit newly-born babies, but the woman was not a social worker.
A real social worker had never visited the baby since birth, she said.
The infant was staying with her grandmother while her 16-year-old mother stayed at Humansdorp town, about 120km away. Olivier could not say why the mother and child were staying apart. Police are investigating. - Sapa