'I stalk my teenage son because he was kidnapped as a baby': Traumatised mother Sarah Tipping from Brighton, East Sussex, fears overprotectiveness will drive George away Sarah Tipping, 34, from Brighton, East Sussex, admits following George, 13 George was snatched in 1999 from pram outside cafe by a teenage girl Kidnapper had suffered a miscarriage but feared telling her boyfriend George and Sarah were reunited 12 hours later and kidnapper jailed But Sarah has never come to terms with what happened Sarah Tipping and George, 13, who was kidnapped when he was six months old and not reunited with his mother for 12 hours The mother of a teenager who was kidnapped as a baby has confessed the ordeal left her so fiercely protective of her son that she now stalks him to make sure he is safe. Sarah Tipping, 34, from Brighton, East Sussex, admits she follows 13-year-old George every time he leaves the house because she is still traumatised by him being snatched when he was six months old. Baby George was snatched in his pram from outside a cafe in 1999, leaving his distraught mother Sarah not knowing if he was dead or alive. Although he was found safe and well several hours later and his kidnapper was jailed, Sarah's agony had just begun. Sarah said: 'I'm ashamed to admit what I do but the truth is, the terror of that day haunts me even now. Everyone thinks that when a kidnapped child is found, the story is over. But when my son was snatched, our lives changed forever and it was the start of the nightmare. Now my biggest fear is I will lose him all over again. While George was a toddler at home it was easy to keep him under watch - and when he started nursery, she went with him. When he moved up to primary school, she made sure she was always the first parent outside the gates at pick-up time. Sarah also insisted on going on all school trips and staying at children's parties to watch over him. When George was six, she started having counselling to deal with her anxiety but it did little to help. By the age of ten, George started complaining about not being allowed to do anything on his own - so she began bribing with money and computer games to get him to stay indoors under her watchful eye. Sarah, pictured with George when he was a baby, says her biggest fear is that she will lose him all over again Sarah says: 'I tried to explain what had happened to him, but he was too young to understand really. So instead, I resorted to bribing him with cash to stay home. Like most boys his age, he soon realised he could work it to his advantage. When George turned 12, his friends started going out on their bikes, and Sarah knew his social life would suffer unless she loosened her grip. That was when she started letting him out - but following him in secret. Sarah said she tried bribing George with cash to stay at home because she was scared what would happen if he left the house She said: 'I never thought I could run that fast until I followed George on his bike. But believe me, if you're worried about your child, you have speed you never thought you had. I was very careful not to be seen, even if it meant hiding behind a wall. I wish I could stop but I am still terrified something will happen to him. Sarah said: 'Everyone thinks that when a kidnapped child is found, the story is over - but when my son was snatched, our lives changed forever and it was the start of the nightmare' Sarah was single and 21 when she gave birth to George, having split up with his father with his dad when she was five months' pregnant. Keen to support her son, she worked at a local shoe shop in Brighton while her parents looked after George. But on October 12, 1999, the happy new mum's life was turned upside down when her dad James burst through the door of her shop without her beloved baby. George as a young boy Sarah says: 'I looked at him and the first thing I said was, "Where's George?" Dad looked pale and there was no buggy so I knew something was terribly wrong even before he spoke. Her father managed to say through tears: 'I've lost him.' Sarah said: 'I felt like my heart stopped.' James explained that he had taken George out for a walk in his buggy when he'd been approached by a new neighbour, an 18-year-old girl who had moved in four months earlier. She had tearfully explained that she was having trouble getting her wages from a local café. She asked James if he would go back with her for support. Feeling sorry for the girl, he had agreed. But when they got to the café, the teenager offered to stand outside with George while James went to speak to the owner, who had no idea who he was talking about. When James came out, he discovered the girl - and his grandson - had vanished. He immediately went to find Sarah at work and a huge police hunt began, complete with helicopter search teams. Sarah had never met the woman who stole her baby so tried not the think the worst. She said: 'I tried to stay positive but at the end of the day, I didn't know what she wanted my son for. Dad just sobbed on the sofa while I paced the floor unable to sit down. It was six agonising hours before they finally got news. Baby George with Sarah's father, James, who was looking after George when he was kidnapped by a teenage woman from outside a cafe Police announced that they had found George and his abductor in Alton, Hants, 50 miles away. They had received a tip-off from someone who knew the girl, who was claiming George was her own. They had become suspicious and called the police. The girl was arrested and George was taken to a local police station. Sarah and her father went straight there when they were told. Sarah says: 'George was actually smiling when he saw us. His cheeky little face gave no clue to what he had been through. George in an early school photo In May 2000, George's kidnapper was sentenced at Lewes Crown Court to 18 months at a young offender's institute. She claimed to have taken George because she had suffered a miscarriage and had been too afraid to tell her boyfriend. After snatching George, she had boarded a train to her boyfriend's mum's house and pretended George was hers. The judge called her 'a very devious and dishonest young woman'. Sarah says: 'I almost fainted with the relief when she was sentenced.' But the young mum's joy was short-lived as she found she was unable to let George out of her sight - and even gave up her job to devote herself to his safety. Sarah says: 'I'd forgiven my dad but I couldn't risk losing my son ever again. My dad turned to drink to cope with the guilt of what he had put us through. I told him I didn't blame him but it wasn't enough - a year later he died of a heart attack, aged 42. I blamed the stress of the kidnapping. It was devastating and made my urge to protect George even more overwhelming. Sarah snubbed strangers who stopped to coo over her baby and avoided all kinds of social situations. And even all these years later, she still cannot overcome the terror and kick the habit of guarding her boy - although she does worry that she will end up driving him away. She says: 'Even George tells me not to be daft - after all, he's almost taller than me - but nobody knows the fear of kidnap until they have experienced it. 'I want the best for my son and worry that I'll lose him all over again because of my over-protectiveness.' George will now know what I am doing but I have to tell my story. I know I need to get help before I push him away. I wish that when he was found it was the end of the story, but it was just the beginning. But I'm determined to control this for the sake of my son. I want people to understand how devastating and traumatic kidnapping can be, even when a child is found. All these years later, Sarah still can't get over the fear of George being taken away from her all over again, so she stalks him to ensure he is safe