Henagar Kidnapping Breakthrough: Surveillance Camera Footage Shows Chilling Moment Of Crime

The DeKalb County Police are investigating the kidnapping of a 7-month-old child. The alleged suspect has been identified as a known human smuggler. Authorities believe the Department of Homeland Security has also been notified as part of the investigation.

In the meantime, joint efforts by multiple law enforcement agencies and a nationwide Amber Alert helped lead to the suspect’s capture. Recently released surveillance footage reportedly shows the moment the suspect sped away with the infant while leaving the parents behind.

Based on information gathered during the investigation, the suspect, Selvin Alirio Reyes-Lopez, was hired by the family to drive them from North Carolina to Nebraska. During the journey, the suspect made a deliberate pit stop at Henagar, where he refuelled the car. In the meantime, the infant’s parents stepped out of the car and walked towards a nearby gas station.

This was the moment when Lopez carried out the crime. With the 7-month-old child still inside the car, he promptly went back inside the white Ford Expedition and drove out of the gas station, leaving the parents behind.

Incidentally, a surveillance camera footage has recorded the entire kidnapping. It also captured the horrific moment when the parents stepped out of the gas station. They were shell-shocked to realize that the car and the driver were gone, and with him their child as well.

Authorities at the DeKalb County Sheriff’s office responded to a report of child kidnapping from MJ Fuels. The suspect reportedly zoomed away on Highway 40 towards the direction of Jackson County as he attempted to flee with the infant.

Investigators promptly raised a lookout alert for the described suspect and a white SUV, while agencies across North Alabama began searching for the kidnapper. It was within 90 minutes that the police were able to spot the car in Madison County, and the child was unharmed.

An undercover agent in the investigation later stated that the child was reunited with its parents. The individual remarked, “The parents, as expected, were very emotional and very grateful that their child was located safely.”

Lopez was arrested on the spot and charged with kidnapping and two counts of human smuggling. The 29-year-old was allegedly a Guatemalan national who had been residing in the United States illegally for many years.

Authorities discovered that he had a spotty track record of human smuggling and was a notorious name within the crime circles. Investigators refused to reveal any possible motive that fueled Lopez to drive off from the gas station and attempt to flee with the infant.

As the DHS continues to assist the local authorities in the case, the suspect has, in the meantime, been lodged at the DeKalb County Detention Center.

At the end of the entire ordeal, Sheriff Nick Welden stated, “This arrest is the result of phenomenal teamwork, and I am so thankful this baby is safe and sound back at home where it belongs. Protecting children from those who seek to exploit them is one of the most important responsibilities we have in law enforcement.”