I was, but only because she hid something from me for so long. Plus, flyers with her photos and information had been circulated nationwide. So she went to the woman she had called mom her whole life Annugetta "Ann" Pettway. "If I had all that anger in me it would be me who would suffer and it would stop me from living.". 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). On Aug. 4, 1987, Joy White and Carl Tyson rushed their newborn daughter, Carlina White, to the hospital due to a fever. Pettway finally had to confess to White that she wasnt her biological mother. As documented in Unsolved Mysteries, White was abducted from a New York hospital in 1987 when she was just 19 days old. It turned out that Carlina was actually being raised in Bridgeport, Connecticut, and went by the name Nejdra Netty Nance. But they soon came to a dead end, and the case of Carlina Whites kidnapping went cold. ", 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.". She apologized to White's real family during her court appearance, but they weren't exactly in a forgiving mood. This also included an attempted embezzlement charge from 2010. Pettway boarded a train for her home in Bridgeport, Conn., and told friends and family member the baby was her child. In her plea agreement, Pettway told the court how she had caught a train from her home in Bridgeport, Connecticut, to New York, where she snatched the 19-day-old from Harlem Hospital, after the baby was brought there with a fever by her parents. The revelation was not entirely surprising to White as she had begun to notice that she did not share physical traits with Pettway. Daniels said that the Pettway family is well known in the area and that his own sister had been friends with Pettway. Pettway later moved to Atlanta, taking Carlina with her. In May 2011, public defender Robert Baum said that he met Carlina White during preparations for Ann Pettway's trial and that White agreed to testify on Pettway's behalf. [4][5] The baby had been receiving intravenous antibiotics when, between 2:30am and 3:55am, someone removed the IV line and abducted her. 2023 BDG Media, Inc. All rights reserved. Pettway, who had been loitering around the facility for at least a few weeks, if not months, before the abduction, police toldThe New York Times (opens in new tab), had been dressed as a nurse and interacted with White's parents upon their arrival at the hospital. Kates coat was a Catherine Walker rewear; Diana wore her Moschino suit numerous times. Sentencing is scheduled for May 14, 2012. According to court documents, when White asked Pettway for her birth certificate, the woman lied, saying she didn't have one because White had been given to her by a woman who used drugs. "For 23 years, Ann, you had me suffering. Marie Claire is part of Future plc, an international media group and leading digital publisher. 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. According to The New York Times, Pettway explained that she kidnapped White after suffering several miscarriages in an attempt to fill the emptiness they left behind. "It was wrong," Pettway told the judge when she entered her guilty plea today in a New York courtroom. "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," said White's biological father, Carl Tyson. She did not believe she would ever be able to be a parent," a court document filed by FBI Special Agent Maria Johnson, who interviewed Pettway, stated. She brought her beautiful daughter. In 2005, White became pregnant. Morgan Doughty Filed A Lawsuit Against The Murdaugh Family, Curtis Cousin Eddie Smith Claims Alex Murdaugh Made Him A Fall Guy, Buster Murdaugh Testified For The Defense At His Fathers Double Murder Trial, Love Is Blinds SK Addressed Cheating Claims Following Raven's 'After The Altar' Interview, Get Even More From Bustle Sign Up For The Newsletter. . On Jan. 23, 2011, Annugetta Pettway turned herself in to the FBI after a warrant was issued for her arrest. In the second volume of Netflix's reboot of the classic true crime series Unsolved Mysteries, one episode explores the tragic back-to-back kidnappings . As reported by New York magazine, Tyson dropped his girlfriend at her house and returned home to try to get some sleep. It was the same woman who had given Tyson directions earlier. She called the center's hotline and was able to contact her birth family. 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. A family member worked with authorities to arrange Pettway's surrender. 2012 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. 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. 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. But no one ever came forward, and the parents had to wait 23 years before gaining some closure. 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. Relatives told CBS station WCBS that White was raised in an abusive home in Connecticut and then later moved to Georgia. The Whites had brought their 19-day-old infant, who had a high fever, to Harlem Hospital in Manhattan on August 4, 1987. Joy White and Carl Tyson spent the next 23 years wondering what had happened to their daughter. According to New York magazine, White was in high school when she discovered that her birth certificate was fake. / CBS New York. 24/7 coverage of breaking news and live events. If they don't accept it, it's understandable. Pettway is on probation because of a conviction for attempted embezzlement. Pettway posed as a nurse, took the baby from the couple and pretended to take her for treatment. A woman who admitted to stealing a 19-day-old infant from a Manhattan hospital in 1987 was sentenced Monday to 12 years in prison. 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. In her late teens she became suspicious of who she was.. Suspicious that her mother wasnt who she said she was, White began doing research on the website for the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC), and she soon saw herself in their database. / CBS News. "She's concerned about the impact this has on all the members of her family, but she is trusting that all the true facts will come out and when they do, she will be looked at in a very different light," Baum said. "[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. When Joy White and Carl Tyson came with their daughter, Carlina, to get her fever checked, Ann even consoled them. Read about our approach to external linking. "We say listen, the Whites . After a quick visit, White returned to the airport to catch her flight back to Atlanta. Then, in a quest to find some answers, Netty turned to the internet. DNA tests last year confirmed her as the daughter of Joy White and Carl Tyson. Heres how it works. Dis friends have said she referred to the doctor as the love of her life.. White's parents sued the city and with the money they won established a trust fund for their daughter in the event of her return. Authorities issued a warrant for Pettway's arrest for violating her parole in a North Carolina embezzlement case. 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. 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. 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. Now in her 30s, she seems content to live a private life with her daughter away from media attention. In thesecond volume (opens in new tab)of Netflix's reboot of the classic true crime seriesUnsolved Mysteries (opens in new tab), one episode explores the tragic back-to-back kidnappings ofChristopher Dansby and Shane Walker. [13] On February 17, 2011, a federal grand jury indicted Pettway on the kidnapping charge. [9], After the confirmation that Nejdra Nance was really Carlina White, the Federal Bureau of Investigation began a search for Ann Pettway. (Image credit: New York Daily News Archive), Catherine, Princess of Wales, Had a Hilarious Reaction to Being Called Prince Williams Assistant, Catherine, Princess of Wales, Majorly Channeled Princess Diana in Her Look from This Weekend, Camilla Will Officially Be Known as Queen CamillaNot Queen Consort CamillaAfter May 6, The 75 Best K-Dramas You'll Be Completely Hooked On, Selena Gomez Revealed Meryl Streep Is Joining 'Only Murders in the Building' Season 3, The 56 Best Musical Movies of All Time: Iconic Movie Musicals, Sophia Brown on Joining the World of The Witcher: Blood Origin, 'Ginny & Georgia' Season 2: Everything We Know, The Cast of 'The Crown' Season 5: Your Guide. Here's everything we know about White's miraculous case, from her shocking kidnapping to her triumphant reunion with her birth parents. White was raised as Nejdra Nance. By Andrea Park. White ultimately discovered that she had been kidnapped as a baby by searching missing children web sites, and earlier this year was finally reunited with her real family. At first, White only searched for kidnappings that had occured near Bridgeport, Connecticut. Please enter valid email address to continue. They rushed her to the hospital, where doctors discovered White had an infection from swallowing fluid during her birth. During the hearing, Pettway apologized, saying "I would like to apologize to the family. In 2012, Ann pleaded guilty to federal charges of kidnapping. Get browser notifications for breaking news, live events, and exclusive reporting. "Pettway was dealing with the stress of trying to be a mom and had had several miscarriages. She knew something was wrong but when Netty confronted Ann Pettway, the woman who raised her, Pettway told her that her mother was a crack addict who deserted her and never came back. "Because of my actions so many lives were hurt," she said, adding that she had raised "a wonderful bright young woman". Pettway posed a nurse, took the baby from the couple and pretended to take her for treatment. White, who had been brought to the hospital with a fever by her concerned parents at 19 days old and was hooked up to an IV. White recognizes that she caused her biological family pain when she pulled away after meeting them, but she was overwhelmed by the media attention and felt guilt about abandoning the family who raised her. Shockingly, between 2:30 a.m. and 3:55 a.m., someone removed the IV from baby White and abducted her from the hospital. Ann Pettway surrendered to FBI agents last year after a warrant was issued for her arrest. "I wasn't able to take my daughter to school, take my daughter to day care, watch my daughter get on the bus and, you know, have birthday parties with my daughter," he said. 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