4-year-old girl kidnapped by grandmother in Santa Monica; large-scale search quickly catches suspect

SANTA MONICA, Calif. (KABC) – A grandmother endured a horrific ordeal on Friday when her four-year-old granddaughter was kidnapped from a Santa Monica restaurant.

Fortunately, the suspect was found in less than 30 minutes and the child was safely recovered.

The incident occurred shortly after noon Friday at a Panda Express restaurant in the 1900 block of Lincoln Boulevard. At 12:11 p.m., police received a desperate call for help from a woman who said her four-year-old granddaughter had been kidnapped.

According to witnesses, the woman had gone to the cash register to pay for the food and the suspect somehow tricked the little girl into going outside with her. They walked down Pico Boulevard and were out of sight before the grandmother noticed the girl was missing.

Officers arrived within a minute of the call and captured video footage of the incident and the suspected kidnapper, a woman in her thirties.

“At least 30 people from our department were out looking for her,” said Santa Monica Police Lt. Erika Aklufi. “That includes our officers, civilian personnel and our public service officers. We had a drone. We had a sniffer dog. Literally every available person was out looking for her.”

At 12:37 p.m., officers found the woman in a room at the Holiday Motel on the corner of 11th Street and Pico Boulevard. They showed the photos to the motel manager, who recognized the suspect as someone who had stayed there.

They took the suspect into custody and returned the uninjured child to his family.

She was later identified as 31-year-old Breanna Taylor Shields. She was charged with kidnapping and, due to the victim’s age, there was the possibility of a more severe sentence.

“Our heartfelt congratulations go out to the child and his family as they process the shock of this ordeal,” Santa Monica police said in a statement. “We will do everything in our power to ensure they receive assistance during this time and that no stone is left unturned in the investigation.”