'We both felt sick': Parents recall nightmare of Telford baby kidnap

They talked of their relief that the baby was returned safely and that justice had now run its course.

The parents, who will remain anonymous, also thanked West Mercia Police and members of the public who helped ensure their son was returned safely.

• MORE: Telford baby kidnap plot was a 'pre-meditated pipe dream'

The parents issued a statement after 41-year-old Kelly Mahon, of John Broad Avenue in Arleston, was jailed for two years for his kidnap.

They said: "Our son is a beautiful, healthy and happy boy. He is very loving and is developing a distinct personality of his own.

"We cannot express our delight and utter relief that he was returned to us safe and well. When we realised he was gone, we have never felt an emotion like it before.

"We hope no parents ever feel the way we felt that day.

"What happened is every parent's worst nightmare and the reality is worse than you can ever imagine. While he was missing, we cannot explain how we felt.

"The thought that our practically newborn son was alone, frightened and in a strange place with someone he did not know is indescribable. It was hard not to imagine the worst in that sort of situation.

"We both felt sick. It was impossible to think straight. We just wanted to be out there looking for him ourselves."

The family say they are now looking forward to moving on with their lives following the imprisonment of Mahon.

They added: "We are glad everything is over and resolved. We want to get back to normal and be together as a family.

"We are looking forward to moving on, putting this behind us and watching our son grow up."

Mahon knocked on the front door of the family's home in Manor Road in February. The house was just streets away from her home.

When the baby's mother answered the door, she was told her husband and their other children had been involved in a car crash a few streets away. Mahon offered to look after the, then nine-week-old, baby boy while his mum rushed to the aid of her family.

When the little boy's mother returned to the address after finding there had been no collision and her family were safely on their way home, she found both Mahon and the infant were gone.

A wide-scale hunt for the child and the woman was launched with a huge amount of police resources dedicated to the search.

Police officers found the child, fast asleep and uninjured, at Mahon's home address later the same day.

Officers took the sleeping baby to hospital to be checked over by staff before being reunited with his family a short while later.

The family also paid tribute to the police officers and members of the public who helped to ensure their baby was returned unharmed, adding: "We cannot put into words how grateful we are to West Mercia Police for bringing our baby back to us.

We are forever thankful for their hard work. We would also like to thank everyone who called the police to share information on who took our baby.

"This was incredibly brave and you helped bring him home safely to us.

"Thank you to everyone who shared the appeal, both the public and the media.

"Thank you to everyone for their kind thoughts and comments."

Mahon admitted to kidnapping the baby on February 24 when she appeared at Shrewsbury Crown Court on March 29.

The defence accepted there was prior planning of kidnap by Mahon "at least to a degree", but denied she had visited the street of the baby's home the day before.

She had had nappies, a steriliser and a to-do-list at her house when the baby was found.