Toddler found barefoot and alone in street reunited with mom in SW Houston

HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) -- A 2-year-old boy who wandered out of his family's apartment in southwest Houston early Thursday morning has been reunited with his family.

Authorities say Eden Baltazar was barefoot, walking alone in the middle of Bellwood Lane off busy Ranchester Drive, around 4:30 a.m. when a good Samaritan named Felipe found him.

Felipe happened to drive up and see Eden in the middle of the road. He parked his car, rushed out to help and called police.

"I asked him, 'Where's your mom? Where's your father? Tell me.' He just said, 'Mom,'" said Felipe. He said the baby was also crying.

When officers arrived, they let Eden play with the sirens in their patrol vehicles as they waited for family to come forward.



Eden's mother came forward to claim her son around 7 a.m. She says she was asleep when her son left their nearby apartment.

A family member says they had just changed the apartment locks on Wednesday but installed the new lock upside-down.

Eden's father thought he locked the door as he left for work, but didn't.



Eden and his mother have been reunited.



Child Protective Services says they'll visit the family's apartment sometime in the next 24 hours. The CPS investigation is separate from police.

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