‘Baby Abbie’ snatched from hospital as a newborn dies aged 30

Abbie Humphries made headlines in 1994 as ‘Baby Abbie’ after she was kidnapped from her hospital cot

A woman who was snatched from her hospital as a baby has died aged 30 after she was diagnosed with a brain tumour.

Abbie Humphries made headlines in 1994 as ‘Baby Abbie’ after she was kidnapped from her hospital cot in Nottingham by a woman who pretended to be a nurse.

But her husband Karl Sundgren has announced she died on Sunday ‘surrounded by her loved ones’.

He wrote on Facebook: ‘Our beautiful Abbie peacefully passed away yesterday, surrounded by loved ones.

‘She fought so hard with so much strength and grace for over 4 years and can finally rest.

‘Abbie was so strong, and her infectious smile will forever remain in our hearts.’

She was snatched from her cot when she was just three hours old in July 1994 and was not found until 16 days later.

Roger and Karen Humphries with their daughter Abbie on her wedding day in2017
(Picture: Tom Hollow via Angela Mollard)

Police had received a tip off Julie Kelley, a former dental nurse, had arrived home with a ‘baby boy’.

Neighbours had become suspicious after Kelley had told them she was pregnant, but expecting a baby girl.

She pleaded guilty to abducting Abbie and was treated for a severe personality disorder.

Abbie’s mum, Karen, was later diagnosed with breast cancer and died in 2020, one year before Abbie was told she had a brain tumour and was given just months to live.

She previously said: ‘We have just had a terrible amount of bad luck.

‘I usually choose to look at the positive side of everything. It makes everyone feel better.’

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