Woman fakes pregnancy, tries to steal baby from hospital

Grisel Ramirez, mugshot

A California woman who was faking a pregnancy with her estranged husband, dressed as a nurse and tried to abduct a newborn from Garden Grove Hospital in Southern California on Monday morning.

Grisel Ramirez, 48, began getting questions from her estranged husband after her alleged due date passed.  The couple does not live together and never see each other. He was shocked when he learned of the crime and the false pregnancy. Said Lieutenant Jeff Nightengale, “We interviewed him last night and he for sure thought he was the father of a baby girl. He was upset and devastated that it wasn’t true.”

Ramirez dressed as a nurse, entered a patient’s room, and told the new mother to take a shower before the doctor came to examine her. When the woman left the room, Ramirez put the baby in a purple tie-dyed tote bag and attempted to leave the unit. The infant was wearing a bracelet around her ankle containing a sensor, which triggered an alarm when Ramirez tried to carry her off the unit. Most infant care units in hospitals use these types of sensors as a precaution. The baby was not injured and was returned to her mother.

Police were also called to Western Medical Center-Anaheim on July 26 after a suspicious woman was reported to be walking around the hospital asking pregnant women what their due dates were. That woman has been identified via photo lineup as Ramirez.

When she was arrested Monday, Ramirez was uncooperative with police and did not give her correct name. She is being held without bail and will be arraigned on Wednesday.

Sources: Washington Post, CBS Los Angeles