White solved the case herself 23 years later after finding her photo on a website with images of missing children. Feb. 10, 2012— -- A woman who snatched an infant from a New York City hospital 24 years ago and raised her as her daughter pleaded guilty today to a federal kidnapping charge and faces at least 10 years in prison. Ms White's biological mother, Joy White, also told probation officers that her daughter told her that Pettway had once hit her with a shoe, leaving an imprint on her face. "As we've learned of her involvement in this abduction, we've been working to locate her, and we haven't been able to reach her," Keith Acree, a spokesman for the Department of Correction in North Carolina, told the New York Post. Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information. She called the center's hotline in Dec. 2010, encouraged and aided by Pettway's sister, Cassandra Johnson, per theConnecticut Post (opens in new tab). In fact, many of the other staff members even believed that Ann was a part of the team (despite not being employed by the facility). Thats the main thing just to find out where you come from and who you are.. Netty--the name she went by--eventually found a paper she thought was her birth certificate, but it turned out to be false. For the next few weeks, White was in constant contact with her birth parents, but she sometimes struggled to form a relationship with them. Pettway acquired a forged Connecticut birth certificate, which White attempted to use as proof of identity so she could obtain the health insurance, but the officials told her the document was forged. Friends and family assumed shed gone elsewhere to give birth to the baby, presumed to be the daughter of her on-again, off-again boyfriend Robert Nance. When Joy White and Carl Tyson came with their daughter, Carlina, to get her fever checked, Ann even consoled them. Ann Pettway abducted baby Carlina White from Harlem Hospital on August4, 1987, and raised the child as her own. In this article, we take a look at a woman who kidnapped a child only 19 days after her birth. By Andrea Park. In July 2012, Pettway was sentenced to twelve years in prison. [3] The baby disappeared during the early morning, around 2 am when the shifts were changing. I just always believed that she would find me. A woman reportedly dressed as a nurse had comforted the parents at the hospital, but was not a hospital employee. They told him his daughter was missing while his girlfriend screamed in the background. Like Christopher Dansby and Shane Walker, White was kidnapped in New York when she was a child in the '80s. White was portrayed by Keke Palmer in the Lifetime film Abducted: The Carlina White Story. She told the magazine of her plans to revert to her birth name, but said she would still go by Netty, since the name is "not what the Pettway family gave me or what the White family gave me. DNA testing was performed to confirm that Carlina White was indeed their child. Later that evening, in a state of shock, White confronted Pettway, who broke down and confessed that she was not White's biological mother. As the stolen infant's real mother wept in the federal court in . Pettway posed a nurse, took the baby from the couple and pretended to take her for treatment. "[1], In 2014, White spoke at the Crimes Against Children Conference, the leading national training event for law enforcement professionals working to combat child victimization. According to New York magazine, White was in high school when she discovered that her birth certificate was fake. "You didn't take a bike. 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After a quick visit, White returned to the airport to catch her flight back to Atlanta. She "looked like the world was lifted off her shoulders looked a bit relieved because she had been running," Lt. David Daniels of the Bridgeport Police Department said. With NYPD unable to track her down, Carlina was raised in Bridgeport, Conn., under the name Nejdra Nance by a woman named Ann Pettway. Add to this the fact that Netty had noted that she looked different than most in her family, and suspicions were at an all-time high. In July 2012, she was sentenced to 12 years in prison. Carlina Renae White was born in the Harlem neighborhood of New York City on July 15, 1987. Carlina White's father, Carl Tyson, insinuated the punishment was too lenient and felt as though Pettway should receive prison time equivalent to the years his daughter was kept away from him. One day, Ann confessed that she was not the biological mother. So how exactly was the mystery solved? The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children helped reunite White with her biological mother. There was no way of knowing what the woman in white looked like except for the description given by Joy White and Carl Tyson. There, she found a photo of a baby who had been kidnapped in 1987 and looked just like her own daughter, Samani. 24/7 coverage of breaking news and live events. "I went to the hospital," said Pettway. Authorities checked her DNA against her birth parents and realized she was their missing daughter. Nurses said they had checked on baby White every five minutes and had discovered she was missing at 3:40 a.m. [18] By the following July, White became estranged from her biological parents. She then reached out to the organization, which put her in touch with her birth parents. Joy White and Carl Tyson had brought their newborn daughter to the hospital after she developed an infection and high fever; within a few hours, she was smuggled out of the hospital by Ann Pettway. Even before the DNA analysis was complete, with all three feeling certain it would be a match, White began talking to Joy and Carl on the phone, and flew to New York to meet them in early 2011. A US woman who stole a baby from a New York City hospital in 1987 and raised the child as her own has pleaded guilty to kidnapping. Since Netty needed to get health insurance, she needed her birth certificate. ", In court, Carlina White's mother, Joy White, said she cried for days after her child was kidnapped and "wondered if she was being fed, washed and loved.". Before her verdict, she wrote an apology letter that read: I went to the hospital. White grew suspicious during her teens that Pettway was not her biological mother, because of her inability to provide a birth certificate. She was released in April 2021, after serving her time in Alabama. Well, we need to go back to 2005. She graduated from the Columbia School of Journalism in 2017 and has also written for W, Brides, Glamour, Women's Health, People and more. But I can appreciate what she did for me.. "I'm not really satisfied with the sentence because I figure Ann Pettway should have received 23 years in jail because Ann took 23 from me," Tyson told reporters. Then, learn more about the Jim Twins, who were separated at birth only to discover they lived the same life. White attended Thomas Hooker School and graduated from Warren Harding High School in Bridgeport. Authorities issued a warrant for Pettway's arrest for violating her parole in a North Carolina embezzlement case. Pettway confessed to the FBI that she kidnapped Carlina White on Aug. 4, 1987 from Harlem Hospital after enduring several miscarriages. After all, Unsolved Mysteries aims to not only give us well-researched reports on some really chilling cases, but it has also successfully solved some of them with the help of its viewers. Carlina White was reunited with her birth parents in 2011. Jan. 25, 2011 -- The family of Ann Pettway, the woman who confessed to kidnapping Carlina White 23 years ago, has asked for compassion following Pettway's arraignment. Please enter valid email address to continue. PICTURES: Missing Children, Where Are They? Though White was already somewhat suspicious of the fact that she seemingly bore no physical resemblance to Pettway, the first real red flag appeared in 2005, when White got pregnant and asked Pettway for her birth certificate so she could obtain health insurance. You took something away from me," Tyson said. "You hurt me so bad. She was declared an absconder Friday and put into a national law enforcement database. Read about our approach to external linking. The revelation was not entirely surprising to White as she had begun to notice that she did not share physical traits with Pettway. Now, the former Nejdra Nance has legally changed her name to Carlina White, but she informally goes by Netty a name she chose all for herself. Pettway, 51, was arrested last year after the victim,. When national news broke of the reunion, White flew back to New York to do a series of interviews which she felt forced parts of the new relationship that hadnt developed yet. It was wrong. Today, she is at the Federal Correctional Institution, Aliceville(in Alabama). Joy White and Carl Tyson spent the next 23 years wondering what had happened to their daughter. Pettway, the woman who White called Mom while growing up, has several aliases as well as a criminal history that includes charges of embezzlement, forgery, theft and drugs. "I'm pissed. 135 Likes, 3 Comments - Angelin Ann (@anngelinan) on Instagram: " As Eris finally decided to open the pyxis her mother left behind for her 21st birthday." The woman who raised White told authorities that she tried to create a fake birth certificate for her, renaming her Nejdra Nance, but was unable to create a fake document that appeared real, according to court documents. Pettway was ultimately sentenced to 12 years in prison. We all went up there, we had dinner together, her aunts were there. I took a child. And though this reunion brought cathartic closure, White soon struggled to navigate her new life after living while unwittingly trapped in a lie for so many years. Netty graduated from Warren Harding High School, following which, Ann and her moved out to Atlanta for a while. 2011 CBS Interactive Inc. All Rights Reserved. Daniels said that Pettway had a relative contact the authorities through Facebook. Her skin was much lighter than Pettways, and though relatives often called her little Ann, she didnt see a physical resemblance at all. For the next year, White kept pressing Pettway for more details about her birth mother, but Pettway claimed she couldnt remember anything. White explained, There was a part of me that wasnt even there, and now I feel whole. But they soon came to a dead end, and the case of Carlina Whites kidnapping went cold. Pettway posed as a nurse, took the baby from the couple and pretended to take her for treatment. Pettway changed White's name to "Nejdra Nance" and raised her in Bridgeport, Conn. White said she had long suspected Pettway wasn't her biological mother becausethey didn't look anything alike and Pettway could never provide her with a birth certificate. There was no paperwork to follow her such as a birth certificate or social security card. Carlina White/FacebookCarlina White solved her own kidnapping case in 2005. shocking news that their newborn was gone. All the nudity of porn, but with the plot and storylines of mainstream film. In 1987, Pettway told her friends she was pregnant, and a friend later said Pettway left town for a while before returning with a child. Jan. 25, 2011 — -- The family of Ann Pettway, the woman who confessed to kidnapping Carlina White 23 years ago, has asked for compassion following Pettway's arraignment. The case made headlines internationally and solved a mystery that had baffled police for more than two decades. White ultimately discovered that she had been kidnapped as a baby by searching missing children web sites, and in early 2011, was finally reunited with her real family. After comparing baby photos of "Nejdra" to Carlina's, and with White sporting the same birthmark on her arm as baby Carlina, the NYPD contacted Joy and Carl for DNA samples. They specifically challenged the defence's contention that Pettway had provided a "stable, loving and happy home", for Ms White for 23 years. According to records from the Federal Bureau of Prisons, Pettway is still serving her sentence in New York, but she won't be serving all 12 years of it. Where Are Carlina Whites Biological Parents Now. 419 Likes, 59 Comments - Penelope Ann Miller (@penelopeannmiller) on Instagram: "Happy birthday to my hunky hubby A wonderful daddy and partner in life, love, and adventure. On Aug. 4, 1987, Joy White and Carl Tyson rushed their newborn daughter, Carlina White, to the hospital due to a fever. He had just managed to doze off when the phone rang. Jessica O'Connor is a public historian focusing on Deep South Black History with degrees from Winston-Salem State University and the University of North Carolina at Greensboro. White asked Pettway for the document, but she couldnt provide it. 2012 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. [5] DNA profiling confirmed in January 2011 that she was the missing Carlina White. The last time White spoke publicly was at the 2014 Crimes Against Children Conference. He said that she was relieved to confess. Though White distanced herself from her birth parents for some time after their initial reunion due to the overwhelming media attention and her complicated feelings for the family that raised her, she toldNew Yorkin late 2011 that they were on good terms and spoke occasionally on the phone. Ann Pettway, who pleaded guilty in February to . Pettway is on probation because of a conviction for attempted embezzlement. Biological family of Carlina White doesn't believe confessed kidnapper is sorry. [citation needed] An arrest warrant for Ann Pettway was issued by the North Carolina Department of Correction on January 21, 2011, for violating her probation from a conviction for attempted embezzlement. [4][5] The baby had been receiving intravenous antibiotics when, between 2:30am and 3:55am, someone removed the IV line and abducted her. The woman who sparked a nationwide manhunt by snatching a baby from Harlem Hospital a quarter century ago closed the book on the sensational case Friday by pleading guilty to kidnapping. Joy White (Sherri Shepherd) confronts Ann Pettway (Aunjanue Ellis), the woman who kidnapped her baby girl and raised her as her own, in this scene from Abduc. It may be rejected, but I am deeply sorry for what I've done. This also included an attempted embezzlement charge from 2010. Who Is Hasnat Khan, Princess Dianas Boyfriend on Season 5 of The Crown. "I'm not going to say she was the best mom ever, but she did what she had to do to make me who I am," she said. Carlina White said she became skeptical of her past after Pettway could never provide her with a birth certificate. Then, in a quest to find some answers, Netty turned to the internet. When Pettway refused to offer any further information, White's suspicions grew, and she spent the next several years searching for stories of kidnappings in the Bridgeport area. White added to New York magazine that she intended to change all of her official documentation to her legal name of Carlina White, but that she would continue to go by her nickname Netty. As Carlina grew older she began to wonder why she did not look like the rest of her family. However, the prosecution pointed out that Ann had been convicted of a number of crimes while she was raising the child. Pettway confessed to taking 3-week-old Carlina White from Harlem Hospital's emergency room in 1987. "If I had all that anger in me it would be me who would suffer and it would stop me from living.". In his, Carl told Pettway, "What you should get is 23 years, what you took away from me," while Joy said, "I'm broken into a million pieces." Copyright 2023 CBS Interactive Inc. All rights reserved. Pettway did not enter a plea at her arraignment at the U.S. District Court for Southern New York in Manhattan, where she faced between 20 years and life in prison for kidnapping. Pettway had been in trouble with the law several times as a teen on charges of larceny, theft, and forgery, but police who knew her said she wasnt a hell-raiser. As an adult, she struggled with a drug addiction. Pettway kept repeating, She left you and never came back.. As part of her plea bargain, prosecutors originally recommended a sentence of 10 to 12 years in prison. It wasn't until 2010, when she was 23 and living in Atlanta, that she decided to try expanding her search outside of Connecticut, and found a photo of a baby who had been abducted in 1987 and looked just like her own young daughter on the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children's website. Pettway confessed to taking 3-week-old Carlina White from Harlem Hospital's emergency room in 1987. ", 1010 WINS' Sonia Rincon With More On The Story. She apologized to White's real family during her court appearance, but they weren't exactly in a forgiving mood. National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, U.S. District Court for Southern New York, Federal Correctional Institution, Aliceville, "Woman kidnapped in 1987 reunites with NY family", "Police hunt woman who raised kidnapped child", "20-day-old infant with a fever is abducted from Harlem Hospital", "FBI hunts woman who kidnapped baby as victim, 23, begins life with parents", "US woman reunited with family after solving own baby-snatch", "Police Go to Baltimore To Interview Suspect", "Carlina White Update: Ann Pettway Declared Probation Absconder, Sought by Authorities", "Arrest warrant issued for Ann Pettway, woman accused of kidnapping Carlina White from NY hospital", "Suspect in 1987 kidnapping surrenders to police", "Ann Pettway's Confession About Kidnapping Carlina White", "Federal Grand Jury Indicts Bridgeport Woman For 1987 Kidnapping", Ann Pettway pleads guilty to baby kidnapping charges, "Ann Pettway Gets 12 Years For Snatching Baby From Harlem Hospital In 1987", "The snatched girl who solved her own case: Netty Nance was raised by her KIDNAPPER for 23 years", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Kidnapping_of_Carlina_White&oldid=1134061422, Short description is different from Wikidata, Pages using embedded infobox templates with the title parameter, Articles with unsourced statements from July 2020, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, Desire for a child after multiple miscarriages, This page was last edited on 16 January 2023, at 20:54. Pettway and White later moved to Atlanta, Georgia. However, she lied to Netty by saying that the actual parent was a drug addict who abandoned her when she was just a child. Fugitive in $18 million COVID fraud scheme extradited to U.S. Where things stand in the Alex Murdaugh double murder trial, Alex Murdaugh testifies 4 years after fatal boat crash involving son, Ex-Georgia star Jalen Carter was racing in deadly crash, arrest warrants allege, January 20, 2011 - Carlina White: Kidnapped Girl Finds Her Mother After 23 Years. July 30, 2012 / 11:27 PM Ann Pettway abducted baby Carlina White from Harlem Hospital on August 4, 1987, and raised the child as her own. Soon, the trial began, where her lawyers stated that the kidnapping did not stem from a vicious intent. She was convicted for kidnapping Carlina White in 2012. As part of a plea bargain, prosecutors agreed to recommend to the judge a prison sentence of 10 to 12 years. 2023 Cinemaholic Inc. All rights reserved. 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