Carjackers ditch baby, leave behind stolen car South Sider finds infant on her porch

It was a special delivery.

Nadine Grundy was at her home in the 9100 block of South PerrySunday morning when she heard a noise.

"Someone knocked on the door, and when I got to the door, therewas a little baby sitting on the step," she said.

But it wasn't the stork who dropped off the 2-month-old girl whostared up at Grundy from her infant carrier.

Carjackers had stolen a four-door 1989 Pontiac a few blocks awaywith the infant inside.

Police think the carjackers spotted the baby in the back seat and"They realized this is more than they could chew," said GreshamDistrict Capt. Joseph Vaclavik. "They could have been charged withaggravated vehicular hijacking, and with the baby in there, nowthey're kidnapping."

Not only did the thieves drop the child off on Grundy's doorstep,they ditched the car before fleeing, police said.

It all started about 9:30 a.m. Sunday as a woman unloadedgroceries from her car in the 9200 block of South Princeton. The babywas inside and the keys were in the ignition. Two young menapproached and jumped into her car.

"She runs over to try and intervene, they pretend they have a gunand say 'Get back,' " Vaclavik said.

The men traveled only a couple of blocks before abandoning theinfant. Enter Grundy, a mother of a grown daughter and grandmother oftwo.

"I thought it was a joke," she said. "Who was putting a baby on mysteps?"

"It was awake, but it wasn't crying," she said.

"They had it covered up with a blanket," she said. "I brought itin inside, out of the air."

"Then it started crying later on. I rocked that little thing, andit stopped. It was a nice little baby."

But Grundy (who won't give her age except to firmly say "I'mretired") called police.

"I just wanted it to be safe and get back to somebody, because Iknow I can't take care of a baby."

The whole incident lasted about six minutes -- six of the longestminutes the baby's mother would experience. She was distraught whenshe arrived at Grundy's home and couldn't stop crying and thankingher. Police declined to disclose her name.

"The baby's back, the car's back," Vaclavik said. "It had a happyending."

"They had a heart -- they didn't hurt that baby," Grundy said.