PROVO, Utah — Police arrested a Provo man Tuesday after they said he tried to grab a 1-year-old baby from inside a car.
Emilio Lopez Bernal, 51, faces one count of child kidnapping following his arrest outside a Provo home.
According to the arrest documents, two women and the child were sitting in a car idling in the driveway of a house when Bernal opened the backdoor and said "give me the baby" in Spanish. After being told to get away, Bernal began "shouting for [the women] to give him the child."
As Bernal leaned into the car and attempted to reach for the baby, one of the woman grabbed the child and ran into the home. Bernal then closed the door and stood in the yard as another woman called police.
Police officers located Bernal standing on the porch of the home when they arrived and took him into custody after discovering there were active warrants out for his arrest.
Bernal first told police he thought the car belonged to his cousins, but said he didn't say anything to the women inside. He then changed his story about knowing the people in the car, but claimed the homeowners were members of family despite no one knowing who he was.
In the arrest report, the officer wrote that Bernal appeared "to be possibly suffering from some sort of mental illness or drug induced issue."
Bernal was arrested and taken to the Utah County Jail and booked on the possible kidnapping charge and the previous active warrants.
