Do criminal gangs place baby seats on road to lure victims? Fact Check

Warning messages online claim gangs of criminals are placing baby car seats at the side of the road to lure unsuspecting female motorists into stopping their cars, thus making them vulnerable to attack.

FALSE

Such viral warnings about the latest or trending methods used by criminals to attack vulnerable females are a dime a dozen on social media. And while social media can be used to propagate useful safety themed information it can also be used to spread nonsensical scarelore, like this.

This particular claim has been spreading online since at least 2009 when, as if often the case, it was shared by an employee of the Tennessee Department of Corrections who apparently did not deduce that the warning was not based on any genuine threat.

National Gang Week is starting: This is their New target Method While driving on any roads, If you see a baby car seat sitting on the side of the road DO NOT STOP!!!! These are gangs targeting people, especially women, to stop their vehicle to help a baby. They make this baby look as if it has blood on itself or on its clothes, when you get out of your vehicle in attempt to help, the gangs jump out from cornfields or tall bushes. They have beaten women to near death, and then continue to rape them with baseball bats and other torture methods. This is not just a forward of information, it is within our area. If you do happen to see a car seat DO NOT STOP CALL THE POLICE IMMEDIATELY!! Please send this on to everyone you know.
Benjamin F. Bean, State Of Tennessee, Department Of Correction, Central Dispatch
5th Floor Rachel Jackson Bldg., 320 Sixth Avenue North, Nashville,Tennessee 37242-0465

Back in 2009 the Tennessee Department of Corrections subsequently issued a statement claiming the threat was “not supported by current intelligence.”

The retraction, predictably, did not proliferate nearly as much as the falsehood and the floodgates were open for a plethora of equally spurious and baseless incarnations of the same fundamental claim, some of which are below.

There are several things to be aware of … Gangs and thieves are now plotting different ways to get a person (mostly women)to stop their vehicle and get out of the car.
“There is a gang initiation reported by the local Police where gangs are placing a car seat by the road…with a fake baby in it…waiting for a woman, of course, to stop and check on the abandoned baby. “Note that the location of this car seat is usually beside a wooded or grassy (field) area and the person — woman — will be dragged into the woods, beaten and raped, and usually left for dead. If it’s a man, they’re usually beaten and robbed and maybe left for dead, too.
DO NOT STOP FOR ANY REASON!!! DIAL 911 and REPORT WHAT YOU SAW, BUT DON’T EVEN SLOW DOWN.

collected 2010

While driving on a rural end of the roadway on Thursday morning, I saw an infant car seat on the side of the road with a blanket draped over it.
For whatever reason, I did not stop, even though I had all kinds of thoughts running through my head. But when I got to my destination, I called the Canton PD and they were going to check it out. But, this is what the Police advised even before they went out there to check.
“There are several things to be aware of .. Gangs and thieves are now plotting different ways to get a person (mostly women) to stop their vehicle and get out of the car.
“There is a gang initiation reported by the local Police Department where gangs are placing a car seat by the road…with a fake baby in it….waiting for a woman, of course, to stop and check on the abandoned baby.

collected 2021

Crime Management Unit Bexhill Police Station Telephone: www.sussex.police.uk
Sussex Police Serving Sussex
Even if it doesnt happen to you, it is a warning worth being aware about!
This is not a joke originator was at a crimewatch meeting on 18th and the police requested this was sent out. Worth Passing On!
This is happening now!
Sad, especially if you are inclined to help people… While driving on a rural end of the roadway on Thursday morning, I saw an infant car seat on the side of the road with a blanket draped over it. For whatever reason, I did not stop, even though I had all kinds of thoughts running through my head. But when I got to my destination, I called the Police and they were going to check it out. But, this is what the Police advised even before they went out there to check….
“There are several things to be aware of … gangs and thieves are now plotting different ways to get a person (mostly women) to stop their vehicle and get out of the car.
“There is a gang initiation reported by the local Police where gangs are placing a car seat by the road…with a fake baby in it…waiting for a woman, of course, to stop and check on the abandoned baby. “Note that the location of this car seat is usually beside a wooded or grassy (field) area and the person — woman — will be dragged into the woods, beaten and raped, and usually left for dead. If its a man, theyre usually beaten and robbed and maybe left for dead, too.

collected 2009

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Such claims contain all the hallmarks of your typical case of social media scarelore. Namely –

– The claims detail elaborate methods that would be time consuming, risky and inconsistent to execute, and ignore the true nature of such crimes which are often opportunistic crimes that lack the pre-planning and intricate nature these tales seem to promote.

– The claims ignore the unnecessary risks and logical flaws involved in such elaborate methods of crime (for example, what happens if a car full of people stops? What happens if the baby seat attracts the attention of law enforcement? How many female motorists really would stop at the side of the road when compared to male motorists?)

– The claim has been attributed to various police departments or law enforcement agencies, many of which have said it did not come from them. (The Met Police in the UK has also denied issuing the rumour.)

– The claims never source any genuine media reports or verified warnings from law enforcement confirming that such a threat actually exists.

– The claims never mention the names or identities of such victims or witnesses.

– The claims are often attributed, vaguely, to “national gang week” as are many other examples of online scarelore.

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We’ve not turned up a single real-life case of criminals using baby car seats to coax motorists into stopping. Despite the popularity of these warnings, there have been no incidents that we’re aware of that match this description.

If trending crimes of this nature were as prolific as the popularity of these rumours suggest, we’d have no problem uncovering genuine articles and supported warnings online.

While motorists are advised to follow common sense safety advice when out on the roads, propagating alarmist scarelore like this will ultimately help no one.

Be aware that these warnings are now often distributed alongside other known hoaxes, including the crying child at the side of the road legend and the throwing eggs from a bridge warning.