Nanny and Senator's Grandchild Flee Masked Intruders in Silver Spring Home

Masked intruders forced their way into the Silver Spring home of a U.S. senator's daughter yesterday morning, startling a nanny who ran outside with the lawmaker's 2-year-old granddaughter and left his youngest grandson behind.

A Montgomery County police SWAT team later found the baby safe in his crib.

Police think the incident was a burglary gone awry because the intruders apparently didn't realize the house was occupied.

The burglars approached the red-brick house on the 2400 block of Hayden Drive in Forest Glen about 9:30 a.m., police said. After hearing suspicious noises outside, the 42-year-old nanny opened the door.

"When they burst in, the nanny grabbed the little girl and left the child in the crib," police spokeswoman Cpl. Sonia Pruitt said.

The 1-year-old baby, Jimmy, is the youngest grandson of Sen. Pete V. Domenici, R-N.M.

The nanny ran to a neighbor's house to call police, who initially feared the incident could turn into a hostage situation. Domenici's daughter, Helen, called her father shortly after being notified of the situation. Neither she nor her husband was home during the incident.

"The senator was deeply concerned," said Steve Bell, Domenici's chief of staff.

Police, who would not comment on whether anything was taken from the house, think the burglars fled through the back door before authorities arrived. They remained at large last night.

Shortly after the incident, Reyna Escobar, who lives two houses away, noticed that the nanny's van, which was parked outside the house, had its side door open. Escobar called the nanny to alert her.

"She was crying," said Escobar, 36. "All she told me is some men had broken in. She said she couldn't talk to me."

An emergency response team, which includes SWAT officers, was dispatched to the quiet, hilly street about 30 minutes after the men entered the house.