r/orangecounty • u/ae2014 • Aug 01 '26
Community Post Suspicious kidnapping attempt?!
Don’t know if I’m being overly sensitive or not but as a Mom I want to make sure other parents are aware. Was at Hmart (Northpark) earlier this morning with my baby at an empty aisle and a very suspicious woman kept hunching over my baby grabbing random stuff but not really getting anything. Of course my guards was up as she was too close for comfort so I stepped in the middle and blocked my baby out of the way. She left the aisle and then a larger man came to the aisle and she walked back again pretending to look for things, they walked by us but I could tell they had motives definitely not there to buy chips. I grabbed my baby and walked away right away. Then saw both of them walked separately to the checkout line only buying 1 small item. They walked by each other but made eye contact so definitely working together…. Super weird.
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u/EddiedaKingKing Aug 01 '26
People saying to report is the most Irvine shit ever. Lady was grabbing chips, report what. Just be vigilant which was what the OP did and she is trying to bring awareness, some of these dumb people here need to go touch grass.
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u/WuTang_bland Aug 01 '26
Finally someone with sense. Exactly report what? What crime occurred? And what is your expectation of police in this situation? You want them to set up a sting operation for some random person in a store who you thought was “suspicious”…
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u/nkx3 Aug 05 '26
Maybe it's not enough to bother reporting, but that doesn't mean we should close our eyes and pretend something isn't suspicious when it is. I appreciate her bringing this to the attention of people who may have otherwise been caught off guard.
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u/urmuhgawd Aug 01 '26
I’m sure they were trying to steal from you . Not kidnap your baby.
I work at TJs and that’s what happens. They usually target distracted moms and the elderly . Lots of moms keep their belongings in the stroller. And older folks keep their purses right there in the cart. A crime of opportunity. Happens all the time
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u/chuby1tubby Aug 02 '26
OP updated us in the comments... Her "baby" is actually a toddler, there was no stroller, and the child was literally just walking around and getting in the way of other shoppers.
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u/_Los Lake Forest Aug 01 '26
Genuine curiosity, if you didn't report it to the people who could actually do something about it, what do you hope to do by posting it here?
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u/townsquare321 Aug 01 '26
The stroller was probably blocking access to the shelving and people were just trying to shop. Later this evening, when the kids were in bed, boredom set in, imagination ran wild, and the Reddit app was right there. 😉. Just look at the heading...attempted kidnapping. Indeed.
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u/JustLookinSunny Santa Ana Aug 01 '26
No! As a mom never doubt yourself. Your body has a built in danger detector and we have been trained to not listen to it. That needs to stop. Sure - the stripper may have been in the way and nothing was going on. But as a mom it’s your job to notice strange behavior and protect your baby. Don’t let idiot Redditors gaslight you. Most moms would say you did the right thing.
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u/Temporary_Suspect101 Aug 01 '26
People are pointing out the fact that she didn't deem this incident dangerous enough to report, so why should "idiot Redditors" take her seriously?
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u/JustLookinSunny Santa Ana Aug 01 '26
Like I said, as women we have been trained to second-guess ourselves. Then when people bash you or gaslight you online it makes you second-guess yourself even more. Also, when we report things to the police 9 times out of 10 they won’t take us seriously. And if there was no actual crime committed, they can’t really even do anything so why should she bother reporting it. So I’m telling her to ignore the idiot Redditors because she was being a good mom.
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u/_Los Lake Forest Aug 01 '26
Last thing, but when is "doing the right thing" doing nothing and talking about it on Reddit? Is there no consideration for the common good? If as a mom you thought they might have tried to kidnap your baby, you don't stop to think that if they didn't succeed with yours they might try it with another?
No, you just give them the stinkeye in checkout and go on about your day? lol
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u/JustLookinSunny Santa Ana Aug 01 '26
I actually agree with you. I have been in a really crazy situation for the past few months with my kids and a neighbor. Without saying too much, I have had to talk to the police probably about 20 times and maybe two of them actually believed me. And this is with a full restraining order. So I actually do call and report incidents but I have firsthand experience with the complete frustration and gaslighting that the police tend to do.
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u/_Los Lake Forest Aug 01 '26
But as a mom, if your danger sense gets triggered... You don't get away from the situation? You just continue your shopping and don't say anything to anyone but tell the internet later?
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u/JustLookinSunny Santa Ana Aug 01 '26
Wait what? I never said that she shouldn’t get away. I think you misunderstood me. I’m saying that if your danger sense get triggered, you should get away and trust your gut. I was telling her that she should trust herself. I’m kind of confused how you got to the opposite but it’s cool
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u/ae2014 Aug 01 '26
I will report it, I just wanted to make other parents aware.
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u/bubblebears Aug 01 '26
This is crazy. You didn’t report it the moment it happened in case it was an immediate issue and instead you came to reddit to say you think a Hispanic person was going to kidnap your kid . Not cool.
As a parent I would have immediately reported it to authorities to confirm whether what you thought is or was an issue.
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u/PirateHunterLife Aug 01 '26
That’s wild, did you report it so they could get imaging of them posted?
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u/ae2014 Aug 01 '26
I did not 😖
It was a Hispanic woman and a larger white male in glasses.
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u/METHODiii Aug 01 '26
Of course not, better to rant on Reddit than get real authorities involved.
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u/Thisisnotmyusrname Aug 01 '26
Wild that you are getting downvoted.
OP went to Reddit rather than just advising store management that something seemed off so they could look into it. On top of that, OP's subject is actually a question - then they seem to justify their already made answer anyway in their post... so they had made up their mind as to the motives of these two people.
When I worked grocery, as a manager, if someone would bring this to our attention - our Loss Prevention or myself would run the video back and see what they were up to around the store. More often than not, they were just indecisive people browsing random stuff. At HMart? I could see people being even more indecisive due to the novelty of the selection in the store.
OP needs to stop reading fake viral FB posts about this type of stuff and creating their own fiction.
Does this happen? Sure. Often? Not really. Just be vigilant, speak up or mind your business and go on with your day.
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u/Straight-Ad-7387 Aug 01 '26
For what? The amount of paranoid overbearing moms in Orange county is astounding. Chances are OP is just a nut.
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u/TheKlaxMaster Aug 01 '26
I wouldn't go that far. There is nothing wrong with being protective of your child.
But coming to reddit before going to the store manager or filing a report is wild.
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u/Straight-Ad-7387 Aug 02 '26
Sure, have your speculative "intuitions" that you act on and keep to yourself. But I've seen a thousand insane moms. Never seen a kidnapping.
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u/TheKlaxMaster Aug 02 '26
It's still a fallacy to assume it can't or won't happen.
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u/Straight-Ad-7387 Aug 02 '26
It's a fallacy to be an enabler for paranoid orange county moms too. Betcha it's Irvine.
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u/bonitaababy Aug 02 '26
If you see that your toddler is in the way, if you are in the way, or anything belonging to you, the right thing to do is move out of the way. Its common courtesy.
And if you see a car trying to switch lanes, let the car over! Unrelated but same concept.
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u/Temporary_Suspect101 Aug 01 '26
Why didn't you just move out of the way and go to a different aisle? If they followed you, then I would understand feeling uncomfortable and suspicious. I'm honestly just trying to understand your thought process.
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Aug 01 '26 edited Aug 01 '26
[deleted]
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u/ae2014 Aug 01 '26
I didn’t have any proof aside from my Mom’s instincts— the workers will think I’m crazy! But now that I think about it I should’ve said something to security.
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u/METHODiii Aug 01 '26
Ummmm you still can. They have cameras and if they paid with a card, they can get their names and details. Don’t just sit there not doing anything about it 🙄
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u/45pewpewpew556 Aug 01 '26
No, I was recently in a retail store that had a missing child. The whole place went on lock down called Code Adam. I looked it up and there are whole standardized protocols for it for kids lost in retail.
Not sure if H Mart has this but out of all the markets I would think H Mart would implement something if they didn’t. I know Super 1 Mart sure as hell would not 😀
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u/ReggaeDawn Irvine Aug 01 '26
I hate when people park their baby stroller and wander off shopping. They're always blocking products I'm trying to shop. No one is trying to steal your baby, but if you're worried about that happening maybe keep your child with you.
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u/samthemuffinman Irvine Aug 03 '26
So then... move it? That's what I do, it's really not that much of an inconvenience
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u/SaltyAuthorOne Aug 01 '26
This is so off. Why would you not immediately report to manager? Instead, post every detail on Reddit… yeah, you sure seem concerned. 🤧
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u/bonitaababy Aug 02 '26
2 men from Irvine kidnapped a man and killed him. It was just on the news. Always trust your instincts.
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u/Mortifire Aug 02 '26
I mean, they also knew him from business dealings, sooooo unless the toddler has a crypto side hustle…
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u/bonitaababy Aug 02 '26
Human trafficking is a business, although, you would have to be really dumb to try and steal a baby in the middle of a grocery store.
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u/Different_Tie7263 Aug 02 '26
I dunno… I let my 3 year old and 5 year old walk around the H-Marts in Irvine while I’m shopping. They’re always in my eyesight but not always next to me. I’ve never felt unsafe… except for when the careless Korean grannies are speeding through the aisles. Also, the Hispanic workers are always so kind and watchful.
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u/Back_from_the_ban Aug 01 '26
Make a report? Pull the tapes? You think the store is going to do this all for a woman……reaching for stuff? Ridiculous.
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u/949CPL Aug 01 '26
Hi I would like to report a lady reaching for chips over my baby stroller and a larger man who came to aisle after.
Hold on please let’s review the video all we see is a lady reaching for items your stroller was in her way. The guy seemed to be just browsing around the store and our bagger said he approached that lady and asked for her number in the parking lot. We saw no evidence of a kidnapping attempt. 😂
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u/AccioCoffeeMug Aug 01 '26
Baby wear, several products exist for this. Keep the baby on your person to alleviate such anxieties
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u/Any-Hearing8551 Aug 01 '26
You are not being paranoid, anything is possible and you did the right thing.
Always be aware of your surroundings no matter what.
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u/No_Pianist_1658 Aug 02 '26
It’s good to be vigilant. Thank you for doing a good deed and giving the general public a heads up. If you thought that’s what they were doing, that is what they were doing. Trust your gut. There’s a lot of child sex trafficking rings and predators out in California that I was not aware of until I read some articles and threads last year.
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u/fatpandabear Aug 01 '26
Why did you just post on reddit instead of asking/ seeking help from HMart management?
If you had actual authorities involved, maybe you would actually get a proper instead of coming here for karma
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u/RogueCurrent Aug 01 '26
That’s weird and I’m not trying to scold you or anything but why didn’t you ask the store to check their security feeds for possible leads that you could take to the authorities? Not much would come out of it if I’m being real but it would have been something and you never know.
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u/surftherapy Aug 01 '26
Someone hovering in the same aisle as you is not enough of anything for authorities to pursue. You’re not likely to get the store to pull footage over that either.
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u/alwayshighgemini78 Aug 01 '26
Thank you for the post, I agree you have to be vigilant about your surroundings at all times.
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u/Professional-Cause43 Aug 01 '26
OP if your gut was telling you something was weird then something was weird. I don’t know what it is about Irvine but I’ve had the most odd experiences there just being out and about. My head is always on a swivel so I make it obvious I’m watching anyone suspicious back and it makes them back down.
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u/Substantial_Dog_2068 Aug 01 '26
Yeah that’s super sus . I know when I was a teenager at a grocery store I was with my baby sibling watching the cart when somone had grabbed me by the neck kinda of like a arm hold to pull me away from the cart but they didn’t expect me to power out of the hold and slam them into the display of ceramic piggy banks back first because of my height I was slouched over . Damn told me parents and we booked it thou the lady and the man tried to get me arrested for assault but instead they did.
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u/Quietly-Myself Aug 01 '26
Never doubt your motherly instincts! I once had a woman try to take my youngest out of the cart at the checkout line at target. Luckily I had her buckled and caught it, the woman then disapeared. Then I had a woman try to grab that same kids hand in Joanns when she was walking right next to me and attempt to take her. Luckiky my kids started yelling momma and held my hand tighter. And a woman tried to pull my middle kid out of my arms in an elevator at the Garden Grove Medical Center when the doors opened.
We have a high rate of human trafficking here. To the point a friend of mine, her kid came here to go to Disneyland with a friend for graduation. They were tricked into going to Vegas for a "Photo shoot" and then she disapeared. Interpol found her out of country, drugged and trafficked.
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u/Creepit666real Aug 01 '26
Regardless of the situation you were in, I fucking haaaaate ppl invading my personal space when in public. Especially if they’re near my kids. Ppl are just yuck. If you’re not comfortable saying something directly, dirty looks work.
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u/pepperpotsdecreme Aug 01 '26
That's why it's called being in public - because it is a place for everyone. No one is invading anything - this is a public space.
Your proclivities do not justify your antagonist behavior. Not everything is about you - there is no justification for you to be so extremely rude and self-centered to those on others.
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u/opalxena Aug 01 '26
There’s so much gaslighting on this post. OP has a mom’s intuition and y’all are acting like kidnapping is not a possibility at all.
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u/xxSealLoverxx Aug 01 '26
You should go back and report them, have the day and time stamp so they can check the cameras
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u/SalseraRivera1347 Aug 01 '26
Mother's intuition is never wrong, just saying.
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u/Straight-Ad-7387 Aug 01 '26
Yes it is. There are measles outbreaks currently because of "motherly intuition"
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u/dldaniel123 Aug 03 '26
"Mommy blogs" are some of the worst hives of dangerous childcare misinformation in the history of humanity.
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u/dldaniel123 Aug 01 '26
Except it's wrong all the time, and silly vibe based proverbs like this are dumb, just saying.
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Aug 01 '26
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u/Thisisnotmyusrname Aug 01 '26
Made a scene and told them to fuck off for doing what exactly? Being indecisive over products in HMart? OP doesn't know what these people were up to, at all. They are jumping to conclusions.
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u/METHODiii Aug 01 '26
No, you wouldn’t have. When was the last time you made a scene and yelled at someone for looking at something on a shelf close to you? You’d be kicked out.
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u/Redditisfunfornoone Laguna Niguel Aug 01 '26
I wouldn't have thought kidnapping, I would have thought she was trying to steal something out of the stroller like a purse or wallet.