Turkish police have detained a man trying to steal a baby from a hospital in southern Turkey following the catastrophic earthquake that hit the region, Agence France-Presse reported, citing state media.
A 7.8-magnitude quake unleashed chaos in southeastern Turkey and parts of Syria, killing nearly 40,000 people and displacing millions in both countries.
A man walked into a hospital pretending to be a police chief in the Samandağ district of the quake-affected province of Hatay, the Anadolu state news agency said Wednesday.
The hospital staff realized his police ID card was fake and called the real police, it added.
When officers detained the man, they found fake police and military ID cards, gold and money in Turkish lira, dollars and euros worth around $6,500, Anadolu said.
The agency did not provide information about the baby.
Some parents in the region have expressed alarm to AFP over rumoured child kidnappings.
Turkish Family Minister Derya Yanık on Monday said at least 1,362 children had been separated from their families by the earthquake.
