NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — A mother whose newborn was kidnapped by a knife-wielding woman posing as an immigration agent was briefly reunited with her baby Saturday, then saw him and her three other children taken from her and put into state custody.

Rob Johnson, a spokesman for the Tennessee Department of Children’s Services, said the children were taken from their mother, Maria Gurrolla, "purely for safety reasons," though he would not detail why the state deemed they were in danger.

"Our focus is on the children, and under the current situation right now, we think the safest thing to do is take the children into state custody," he said.

Gurrolla, 30, was stabbed in her home Tuesday, just four days after giving birth to Yair Anthony Carillo, who was snatched by the attacker.

Nashville police said the baby was found in good health Friday night at a home in Ardmore, Ala., about 80 miles south of Nashville near the Tennessee line.

Tennessee Bureau of Investigation Director Mark Gwyn said officials arrested Tammy Renee Silas, 39, at the home in Ardmore. Federal authorities formally charged her Saturday with kidnapping.

Silas’ live-in boyfriend, Martin Rodriguez, said he was shocked by the arrest and didn’t think she was capable of the crime.

Speaking through an interpreter, he said Silas told him she was adopting a baby from a cousin who had to go to jail, and was going to El Paso, Texas, to get the child. He said he picked Silas up from the Huntsville airport Tuesday and she had a newborn with her.

"She was acting normal around the baby and I didn’t really see any difference, but I think she was happy," Rodriguez said from their one-story home, where a box of baby clothes for a boy overflowed in the dining room. "What woman isn’t happy to carry a baby?"

Rodriguez said he met Silas, a contractor, when they both lived in Nashville. He said Silas is bilingual and was born in Tarrant County, Texas, where she had family. "The last thing that she said to me was, ‘I am so sorry and I love you,’" Rodriguez said.

Earlier Saturday, officials said the newborn would stay with a foster family as authorities arranged for Gurrolla to be reunited with her son.

"This baby is a week old, and this child has spent half his life away from his family. I think it’s time we reunite them," said My Harrison, a special agent with the FBI in Tennessee.

Johnson said officials made arrangements for Gurrolla to see her baby Saturday afternoon and hold him, and she brought her three other children – ages 3, 9 and 11 – with her. All four children were then taken into custody. Johnson, who said he could not discuss details of the situation for privacy reasons, said a judge would review the case next week to determine when the children can go home.

Joel Siskovic, an FBI special agent in the Memphis division, said he could not say why the children were put into state custody. "As of now, there’s no indication that there’s an ongoing threat to the family," he said.

Authorities said they had no word on a possible motive in the kidnapping. Police in Nashville did not know if Silas has a lawyer. The Morgan County Sheriff’s office said Silas was picked up by U.S. Marshals on Saturday morning, though it was not known where she was being taken.

The infant’s mother told police a heavyset white woman with blonde hair arrived at her home posing as an immigration agent and attacked her with a knife.

Gurrolla told investigators that at one point she heard the woman make a phone call and tell someone in Spanish words to the effect of "the job is done" and that the mother "was dying," said Siskovic, the FBI agent.

Siskovic said Silas took the victim’s cell phone, which helped investigators locate Silas.

He would not comment further on the possibility that Silas was not working alone.

At a Wednesday news conference, Gurrolla told reporters she had never seen her attacker before.

Officials believe Silas followed Gurrolla and her baby from a local office of the Women, Infants and Children program and to a Walmart store. "I think it’s clear that she was targeting people at that location," Siskovic said.

Investigators got a break when they found that a video camera in the Walmart parking lot had captured the license plate of the car seen following the mother and baby, according to the arrest warrant.

Cathy Nahirny, a senior analyst for infant abduction cases at the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children, said there have been at least two other recent cases where an abductor used a ploy similar to the one used in this case.

"We need to get the word out to our immigrant communities," Nahirny said. "Anybody that claims they are from federal law enforcement agencies, you have the right and you should ask for photo identification."

Abductions of infants by strangers are rare, with nine reported cases so far this year and five last year, according to the missing child center.

Nahirny said immigrant families have been targets of child abductions because of the assumption they will not tell police.

Gurrolla is Latina but her immigration status isn’t clear. She was released from the hospital Thursday.

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Curiouser and curiouser…

  This story gets more convoluted each passing day. Gurrolla’s immigration status is known; she’s an illegal alien. I still think that there are drugs involved in this whole mess. Illegal aliens and drugs.

By KRISTIN M. HALL Associated Press Writer

AP Photo Watch Related Video Advertisement Buy AP Photo Reprints Your Questions Answered Ask AP: Capt. ‘Sully’s’ jetliner, Somali pirates NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — A week ago, Maria Gurrolla was celebrating the birth of her fourth child. A blue yard sign announced: "IT’S A BOY!" She visited a local welfare office that helps low-income mothers. Then her 4-day-old son was abducted by an attacker who posed as an immigration worker, then stabbed her. The newborn was found safe, but after a brief reunion state officials took the baby away from Gurrolla again, along with her other three children. Now Gurrolla is left to wonder when she might see any of them again. A judge will review the case this week to determine when Yair Anthony Carillo and his siblings – ages 3, 9, 11 – can come home. State officials say the children were taken into custody Saturday for safety reasons but have not offered details. A spokesman said a hearing must occur within three days of when the children were taken into state custody. Tammy Renee Silas, 39, was arrested and charged with kidnapping. She waived her initial court appearance in Alabama on Saturday and is expected to be brought to Tennessee sometime this week, FBI spokesman Joel Siskovic said Sunday. She was appointed an attorney, but Siskovic didn’t know their name and the jail wouldn’t release any information. Police have not released a motive, but Silas’ live-in boyfriend said she told him she could not have children and wanted to adopt a child from a relative who was going to jail. Gurrolla, 30, had returned home with the infant and her 3-year-old daughter on Tuesday when she answered a knock at the door. A heavy-set woman with blonde hair claimed she was an immigration agent and wanted to know about false information Gurrolla had given during a visit that morning to a Women, Infants and Children, or WIC, office. WIC is a federal program that provides vouchers to women to purchase approved foods at grocery stores and pharmacies. Gurrolla’s attacker stabbed her with a knife eight times, mostly in the neck and chest. When the attacker briefly walked away from Gurrolla, she darted to a neighbor’s house, pleading for help. Sometime after that, the attacker fled with the newborn. Gurrolla was left bloodied from head to toe, a long scratch mark on her face. When she held a news conference Tuesday from the hospital to plead for her baby to be found, her eyes were bloodshot and her face was swollen. Gurrolla has told police that she heard the attacker talking on the phone in Spanish, saying, "The job is done" and that the mother "was dying." Authorities have not said whether they think anyone else was involved. Police found a surveillance tape from a local Walmart showing a Kia Spectra with Indiana tags that appeared to have followed Gurrolla. It turned out to be a rental from the Nashville airport, and a phone number registered with the rental led police to Silas on Friday night. Investigators were talking with her live-in boyfriend, Martin Rodriguez, when Silas appeared holding the infant, covered in a blanket. Speaking through an interpreter, Rodriguez told The Associated Press that Silas told him she was adopting a baby from a cousin who had to go to jail, and was going to El Paso, Texas, to get the child. He said Silas had a newborn with her when he picked her up from the Huntsville airport Tuesday. The rental car was returned in Huntsville, authorities said. "She was acting normal around the baby, and I didn’t really see any difference, but I think she was happy," Rodriguez said from their one-story home, where a box of baby clothes for a boy overflowed in the dining room. "What woman isn’t happy to carry a baby?" Rodriguez said the last thing she told him was: "I am so sorry, and I love you." Siskovic, an FBI special agent in the Memphis division, said there was no indication of an ongoing threat to Gurrolla’s family. He could not say why the children were put into state custody. Gurrolla was briefly reunited with the infant on Saturday, and authorities said she was allowed to hold the boy. State officials then took custody of the baby and Gurrolla’s three other children.