A woman and her 3-year-old daughter were found near San Bernardino Friday evening after the woman allegedly abducted the girl during a custody visit in Orange County, prompting an Amber Alert, officials said.
The alleged abduction took place shortly before 2 p.m., when Christina Lujan, 39, took Josephine Lujan, 3, from the child’s grandmother’s home in Garden Grove, according to California Highway Patrol and Garden Grove Police Department officials.
“Christina Lujan should be considered armed and dangerous,” the CHP said in a bulletin.
They were believed to be traveling in a gold, 2012 Ford Escape SUV .
A witness spotted the vehicle shortly before 6 p.m. on the southbound 15 Freeway, south of the 130 Freeway near San Bernardino, according to CHP logs.
Both the mother and child were taken into custody, and Garden Grove police were notified, logs show.
The suspect went to her mother’s house for a custody visit with her mother and child, Garden Grove police officials said. The grandmother briefly stepped inside her home, then returned to find her daughter and granddaughter gone.
The child’s grandmother had legal custody of the girl, police said in a written statement. “There is a current restraining order against the biological mother, preventing her from having any contact with the child.”
Christina Lujan was arrested on suspicion of child abduction, officials said.