Sonia Hernandez's Abandoned Baby Story a Cover for Daughter's Child Endangerment, Long Beach Cops Say

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A woman's story of finding a newborn girl at a Long Beach gas station turned out to be a cover for her daughter's alleged child endangerment, police told the Weekly today.

The child actually belongs to the daughter, cops told us, and was not abandoned last night at a USA Gas station at 7th Street and Alamitos Ave., as Sonia Hernandez said it had been.

Nope. It was a cover for the unidentified daughter, who Sgt. Rico Fernandez says ...

... gave birth and then undertook activity and action -- I can't get into details -- between birth and taking the child to her mother, that is indicative of endangerment and abandonment.

Both mothers are in hot water, with Long Beach police preparing a case that it will turn in to the District Attorney's Office for its consideration, Fernandez told us.

The duo is not under arrest for now, however.

The mother could face allegations of obstruction of a police investigation, the sergeant said: The infant's mom could see child endangerment and abandonment charges.

The story unfolded after Hernandez called police about 10:45 last night to report having found an abandoned baby, umbilical cord still attached, at the gas station.

But cops say they found the 28-year-old who was the real mom driving around nearby. Police aren't even sure who -- the mother or daughter -- called 911.

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Authorities believe the baby had been born hours earlier. Both the baby and the real mom were hospitalized for postpartum observation, Fernandez said.

[Update at 3:23 p.m.]: Long Beach police now say the mom was allegedly hiding her pregnancy and subsequent newborn from her female lover, according to KNX 1070 Newsradio.

City News Service identified the 28-year-old as Paloma Espinosa.

[With reporting from City News Service / @dennisjromero / djromero@laweekly.com / @LAWeeklyNews]