Stolen Baby Jesus Returned To Salem NH Nativity Scene

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SALEM N.H. (CBS) -- Baby Jesus made his second coming on Friday when he was returned to the nativity scene from which he went missing.

Earlier in the week, Salem's Department of Public Works reported a baby Jesus doll was stolen from the nativity scene on the town common, marking the second year in a row the doll had gone missing.

A statue of Baby Jesus was stolen from the Salem Common (WBZ-TV)

Dave Wholley, with the DPW, said he was nearby the nativity scene when Jesus went missing. He looked around for the doll, but when it was nowhere to be seen, Wholley said he suspected it was taken.

"When we couldn't locate him anywhere you kind of start to think it was something a little more devious," Wholley told WBZ-TV.

Police confirmed the doll was returned Friday, found in a grocery store shopping basket near the scene. Last year, baby Jesus reappeared on the side of the road a few miles away from the scene.

The DPW plans to secure each piece of the nativity scene so this cannot happen again.