A young mother in Texas was arrested after she allegedly offered to give her 1-month-old son to a stranger at a bus stop and handed over his birth certificate and his Social Security card.
Police said that Karla Ibarra was at a bus stop in downtown San Antonio when she allegedly approached another woman, who has been identified as Jennifer Benavides, and asked to use her phone. Ibarra, 18, then allegedly handed her 1-month-old son over to Benavides.
“Very beautiful baby,” Benavides told KSAT of the incident. “She’s like, ‘Well, do you want him? I’m going to give him away. I’m going to give him to somebody.’”
Benavides claimed that Ibarra then started “handing me his birth certificate, his Medicaid, his Social Security card,” per the outlet.
Benavides said she convinced Ibarra to come with her to one of her friend’s homes so that they could feed and change the baby. The teen allegedly called an Uber, leaving the home and abandoning her son. However, Ibarra was eventually tracked down by police and was arrested.
“It’s upsetting to know that, with even all the resources that we have out there, that somebody would just do this,” Benavides said. “God just put me at the right place and the right time.”
Texas has the Baby Moses Law in place, which allows a parent to anonymously surrender an unharmed newborn who is 60 days old or younger, according to KSAT. The parent will not face criminal penalties as long as the baby is taken to a designated emergency infant care location, which includes fire stations, EMS stations or hospitals.
Following her arrest, Ibarra was charged with abandoning and endangering a child with intent to return. Her bail was set at $7,000.
Child Protective Services has confirmed that Ibarra’s baby had been placed with other relatives following her arrest, per the outlet.
Police have not yet said if Ibarra had a motive in trying to abandon her son.
Arthur Villarreal, who works as a valet, told KSAT that he was parking cars nearby when he witnessed Ibarra being arrested.
“I was walking down the street. The cops had a girl right here sitting on the curb, and there was a baby in a carriage,” Villarreal told the outlet. “I think she was a homeless lady, at that, the woman that got the baby.”
He added that he saw Ibarra calmly leaning against a wall as she talked to officers before she was taken into custody.
It is not currently clear if Ibarra has entered a plea or retained legal counsel following her arrest. The San Antonio Police Department did not immediately respond to Us’ request for comment regarding the case.
