Authorities seize laptop in kidnapping case

Beth Burger

Jun. 7, 2009 (McClatchy-Tribune Regional News delivered by Newstex) -- MANATEE -- State authorities seized a laptop from a pawn shop that belonged to the wife of a Pittsburgh Pirates minor league player accused of kidnapping a two-month-old girl in March, according to a search warrant released Friday.

Amalia Pereira Tabata, 43, remains in Hillsborough County jail charged with false imprisonment, interference with custody and impersonating a public officer. Pereira Tabata is married to Jose Tabata, an outfielder in the Pirates' organization.

She has been in jail for 73 days and is being held on a $750,000 bond, according to the Hillsborough County jail Web site.

Pereira Tabata was arrested March 24 in Bradenton when authorities received a call she had a baby girl at strip mall. The girl was abducted from the Plant City Health Department.

The suspect reportedly approached the child's mother and told her she needed to take the child because her immigration status was in question. She identified herself as an agent for Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

A woman called Plant City Police Department and told them Feb. 19 a similar incident happened to her when she was at North Hillsborough County Health Department, according to the search warrant.

The caller said a woman matching Pereira Tabata's description told her she was with social services and that her infant child and her were in danger, according to the warrant.

The caller recognized the woman as someone she used to attend church with, according to the warrant. She told her she was lying and left the area. She reported the incident to Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office and told investigators the woman gave the name of Amalia Segui -- one of Pereira Tabata's aliases.

The woman told police she had exchanged numbers with Pereira Tabata prior to the Feb. 19 incident. Pereira Tabata had contacted her via Myspace, a social networking Web site, several times, learning information about her.

According to the warrant, a Florida Department of Law Enforcement special agent seized the laptop from Cash America (NYSE:CSH) Pawn, 755 10th St. E., Palmetto, to look for evidence in connection to the kidnapping of the girl April 1.

The parents of the abducted infant girl identified Pereira Tabata from pictures in a photo lineup.

When Pereira Tabata was arrested with the child, she had a blank St. Joseph's Hospital birth certificate with her, according to the warrant. The certificate had a set of child's foot prints on the back.

Pereira Tabata's husband was interviewed after the incident by authorities.

He told law enforcement Pereira Tabata told him she was pregnant with twin boys in 2006. She provided him with pictures of the sonogram and told him she had the twins in November 2006 when he was out of the country, according to the warrant.

She told him the babies were stillborn. When he returned, she took him to a cemetery and showed him a grave site where the children were buried, according to the warrant.

In June or July 2008, Pereira Tabata said she was pregnant again. She told him she had a baby girl in January 2009 when he was out of the country.

When he returned to Tampa in March to see the child, she told him the baby and her had received death threats. She said the baby was placed with a nanny, according to the warrant.

On March 23, she showed him the abducted infant girl and told Tabata it was his daughter, Nicole, according to the warrant.

All of Pereira Tabata's charges are third degree felonies. Pereira Tabata, who has a prior criminal history including a conviction of arson, could be sentenced up to five years per count.

Beth Burger, criminal justice reporter, can be reached at 708-7919.

Newstex ID: 35567567