This is the heart-stopping moment a toddler was allegedly snatched by a homeless man inside a busy supermarket in Italy.
Shocking CCTV footage captured the one-year-old girl being grabbed in full view of her horrified parents at a store in Bergamo.
The dramatic clip shows the family – mum, dad and their little daughter – calmly exiting through the automatic doors when a Romanian man suddenly approaches.
Within seconds, the suspect, dressed in a black hoodie and green trousers, lunges at the child and seizes her.
In a horrifying tug-of-war, the toddler is yanked in opposite directions as her desperate mother clings to her arms while the man grips her legs.
The girl’s stunned father is seen jolting away from the shopping trolley he had been pushing before rushing to intervene.
Panicked shoppers quickly leap into action, surrounding the pair and helping wrestle the little girl back to safety.
A young girl with black hair can be seen frozen in confusion as the terrifying scene unfolds before her.
Shocking CCTV footage captured the one-year-old girl being grabbed in full view of her horrified parents at a store in Bergamo
The suspect, dressed in a black hoodie and green trousers, lunges at the child and seizes her
In a horrifying tug-of-war, the toddler is yanked in opposite directions as her desperate mother clings to her arms while the man grips her legs
Panicked shoppers quickly leap into action, surrounding the pair and helping wrestle the little girl back to safety
Moments later, security guards storm in and pin the alleged attacker to the ground as chaos erupts inside the store.
Police were called and raced to the supermarket, where officers secured the traumatised child before escorting the suspect to the station.
Investigators pieced together the ordeal using witness accounts and CCTV footage.
The toddler was rushed to hospital following the struggle.
Doctors later confirmed she had suffered a fractured femur as a result of the alleged assault.
The man was arrested on suspicion of aggravated kidnapping of a child under 14 and aggravated assault.
He is currently being held in prison as authorities await formal validation of his arrest.
