The Kidnapping of Carlina White
Carlina White was just days old when she was kidnapped from a Harlem hospital in 1987 and raised under a new name by her kidnapper; 23 years later she solved her own kidnapping.
On Aug. 4, 1987, Carlina White was rushed to the hospital by her parents after reportedly having an extremely high fever. The fever was caused by an infection developed during her birth. White was placed on antibiotics, however, in the early morning hours of Aug. 5, the Carlina’s IV was removed and she had been abducted.
White’s father remembered seeing a woman dressed as a nurse multiple times throughout their time at the hospital and later, surveillance footage captured the same woman leaving the hospital at about 3:30am, potentially concealing the victim in her smock.
An investigation quickly began and police believed they had a suspect, however, soon the case went cold.
While in captivity, White’s name was changed to “Nejdra Nance” and she was raised as a normal child to her captor, Annugetta “Ann” Pettway. However, as White grew up, she began to question whether Pettway was her real mother, as she noticed she had no resemblance to her mother, nor did her mother possess any of her legal documents such as a social security card or birth certificate.
Years later in 2005, White had become pregnant and upon giving birth, needed her birth certificate in order to receive medical assistance from the state, however, Pettway could not fulfill the request. Days later she presented White with a forged certificate, which led Pettway to admitting the truth.
Soon, White was in contact with her biological parents, however, she struggled to form a connection with them. She soon pulled away from them, but formally changed her name back to Carlina White.
