A St. Petersburg woman has been accused of kidnapping her neighbor's baby in an effort to force the woman to change her testimony in a prior case. 

  • Police: St. Pete woman kidnapped baby over case testimony
  • Lorraine Rainey, 35, arrested and charged
  • Anita Johnson's baby returned unharmed
  • Johnson witnessed Rainey try to run over husband, cops say

According to the St. Petersburg Police Department, it started Wednesday afternoon when Lorraine Rainey, 35, attempted to run over her husband, Robert, at their home on 1st Avenue North. 

Robert Rainey was not injured, but their neighbor, Anita Johnson, 33, was a key witness. 

Thursday morning, Lorraine forced her way into Johnson's home and coerced her to drive to the police station to change her statement related to the incident, police said. 

While Johnson was inside, police said Lorraine stayed in the car with Johnson's 2-month-old daughter, London Baker. When Johnson came out, Lorraine and her baby were gone. 

"She felt threatened," said Yolanda Fernandez with St. Petersburg Police. "She felt like she had no choice especially since she had such a young baby. So she made her come here to the police department and this woman stayed in the car with her baby and the mother came inside and she immediately notified us of what was going on."

According to a police report, Lorraine and the baby caught a ride with an unknown person and returned to her neighborhood. When she saw police at her home, she began to walk and run around the neighborhood until police spotted her. 

Police said the baby was unharmed and returned her to Johnson. 

Lorraine is being charged with burglary, false imprisonment, tampering with a witness and kidnapping. 

Police are also asking to speak with the driver who gave Lorraine a ride from the police station. Anyone with information is asked to call 893-7780.