Woman Swipes Nativity Jesus, Reports Neglect: Cops

Police say a woman stole baby Jesus from a Nativity scene in Bethlehem, Pa., and dropped the figurine off at a hospital with a note explaining that the baby had been "neglected" by his parents, "Joseph and Mary Christ," reports the AP. "I did it. I took the statue. It was a joke, a prank. I took it to the hospital and dropped it off. I left a note," 49-year-old Jacqueline Ross told the court, per the Morning Call. Police aren't laughing. She was identified from surveillance video and is jailed on charges of theft and institutional vandalism; bail was set at $30,000.

Police say she went to the hospital early on Dec. 4 just minutes after stealing the $2,700 figurine from Payrow Plaza. Police say she left a note with the porcelain baby that read, "Child has a broken right foot which has been neglected. Parents Joseph and Mary Christ got a warning. Apparently sheep has a baby toe nibbling fetish. Child has been taken to Anderson St. Luke's Hospital for evaluation repair." Ross doesn't yet have an attorney. (More Nativity scene stories.)