BSO looking for parents of baby found abandoned under tree

Newborn recovering at Holy Cross Hospital

POMPANO BEACH, Fla. – The Broward Sheriff's Office is looking for the parents of a newborn left abandoned under a tree in Pompano Beach.

The boy, who believed to be between one and three days old, was found wrapped in a blanket on a patch of dirt nestled between a parking lot and 3-foot hedge at NE 2nd Street and NE 2nd Avenue.

It was a miracle anyone spotted the sleeping infant, eyewitnesses told Local 10's Christina Vazquez.

Abandoned steps away from two churches, rescued by workers at Queen's Little Angels Child Care Center and rushed to Holy Cross Hospital, observers believe divine intervention played a role in the newborn's quick discovery.

A mom, who had just picked up her child from Queen's Little Angels Child Care Center, spotted the blanket behind the hedges as she was walking home with a friend.

At that exact moment, daycare provider Jaceline Saxton of Queen's Little Angels was driving by.

"I see a lady flagging me down and she was pointing in the grass," Saxton told Local 10's Roger Lohse. "She said a baby, baby on the ground and I jumped out of my van and there was a baby laying there. The sun was beaming down on him and his mouth was very, very, dry."

Saxton said the baby was lucky to not be covered in ants.

Saxton instantly called Queen's Little Angels Director Nicole Carter, who carried the newborn to her child care center and then called 911.

Carter provided Local 10 two cell phone pictures she took of the baby boy.

"He was wrapped in a blue blanket. He had his hat on and a pacifier," said Carter. "He was sleeping. He was beautiful. He was sleeping."

The Broward Sheriff's Office tells Local 10 that while there are no physical signs of harm, it does appear that the boy's umbilical cord was not surgically cut. They don't think he was born in a medical facility.

"Oh my God, who could do something like this?" exclaimed Saxton. "If nobody would have found the baby, the baby may have died."

Carter told Local 10's Roger Lohse she thinks perhaps the mother was scared and didn't know what to do.

It is a gracious explanation but unacceptable to BSO, given Florida's Safe Haven Law. The law allows the parents of a newborn who is 7 days old or younger to drop off their baby at a fire station or hospital, no questions asked.

Investigators are now looking for the baby's parents. BSO would like to hear from anyone who knows of a woman who was pregnant and can't account for her baby now.

Meantime, the baby is doing well. Local 10 was told the baby is surrounded by much care and attention at Holy Cross Hospital.

BSO said this is now a Department of Children and Families case.

"It's sad, it's really sad," said Saxton.