Chaos erupted at Miami International Airport on Tuesday when a woman allegedly grabbed a crying boy from his mother and refused to hand him back.

Deputies with the Miami-Dade Sheriff's Office have said that a mother, identified by the Miami Herald as Nadine Joseph, was standing in line with her child at Security Checkpoint 5 with her crying four-year-old son at around 4am.

Alvina Omisri Agba, 23, from Luton, England, then allegedly offered to take the child to calm him down, to which Joseph agreed.

But as soon as she handed over the child, Agba walked away, according to an arrest report obtained by the Herald.

The worried mother then raced to follow Agba, and eventually found her sitting on the floor with her son.