A NEWBORN baby was snatched from a Birmingham maternity unit in an elaborate abduction plot.

A tag on the baby boy’s leg sounded off alarms as he was swept out of Heartlands Hospital, but a series of doors that should have slammed shut and locked were blocked by men involved in the scheme.

Hospital workers described how a security guard ran to stop a group of men bundling the baby into the back of a car but was whacked over the hand with a metal bar as they made their getaway at around 5.30pm on June 27.

The guard remembered their licence plate number, which helped police track down the perpetrators – who are understood to be desperate relatives scared that social services would be taking the child away.

Surraya Richards, Heartlands Hospital spokeswoman, confirmed relatives were involved in the snatch and the baby was returned, unharmed, to the maternity unit, in Bordesley Green, the same day. Hospital bosses said the baby was not off the hospital premises longer than 30 minutes, but insiders have claimed the baby was not returned to the maternity ward for two hours.

Miss Richards said hospital managers had every confidence in its security systems and added: “We can confirm that there was an attempted abduction of a baby on Monday June 27.

“The incident, involving the baby’s mother and father, was handled promptly by hospital security and the police.

“The baby remained unharmed and this incident is now being dealt with by social services and the police.