A Baby Jesus statue was returned to its nativity scene on Dec. 29, 2011, eight years after it was stolen from a family’s yard in Inverness. Someone had found it in their yard in Hoffman Estates and turned it into police, who didn’t find the rightful owners until after Christmas 2011. (Credit: Steve Miller, WBBM)
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INVERNESS, Ill. (CBS) – A “Baby Jesus” figure is back with its Nativity scene, after being stolen eight years ago.
Now 13, Patricia Urbaniak was only 5 years old when the Baby Jesus was taken from her parents’ nativity scene, featuring almost-life-size figures, right in from of their Inverness home.
It turns out someone had found the figure in their yard in Hoffman Estates about a mile away from the Urbaniak home and turned it in to police, who had been keeping it in their property room for the past eight years.
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Property room managers Chris Moore and Stacey Kenost had been trying to find the owners ever since and, a few days ago, somebody showed the Urbaniak family a recent newspaper article about the police searching for the statue’s rightful owners.
“There was a picture and we looked at it and we’re like, ‘That looks so much like ours.’ And we took out our photo album, and we’re like, ‘That’s like a complete match,’” Patricia Urbaniak said.
Moore said she had a feeling they would find the figure’s owners this year.
“I don’t know why, I just did,” Moore said.
Now Lucas Urbaniak says his family is hoping the Baby Jesus stays in the manger.
“Probably gonna have to tie him down or something,” he said.
Thefts from Nativity scenes is a common crime during the Christmas season, typically as a prank. For example, such incidents were recently reported in Elmwood Park, Lombard and Naperville.
