A woman accused of abandoning three children at three different places in Florida apparently is not the mother of any of them.
As CrimeOnline previously reported, authorities received a call at around 5 a.m. Monday after someone dropped an 8-year-old child off alone at a gas station off of Okeechobee Boulevard, according to the Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office.
At 9 a.m., the West Palm Beach Police Department received a call that a woman left a 3-year-old child alone at a Publix store off of Palm Beach Lakes Boulevard. Around 15 minutes later, police received a call that the vehicle seen dropping the children off was spotted Sunrise Avenue and North Ocean Boulevard in Palm Beach.
When officers arrived, they found a 1-year-old baby left alone inside the locked vehicle. They spotted a woman walking away from the vehicle and quickly detained her. Miesha Perkins, 38, of Louisiana, was taken to the West Palm Beach Police Department for questioning.
Perkins allegedly admitted to investigators that she abandoned the children. Upon further investigation, investigators learned that the children’s father was in the SUV with her as they drove to Florida from Louisiana, but at some point, he was “removed from the vehicle,” according to PBSO.
Perkins explained to investigators that she abandoned the children after their father, who is a friend she was helping move to Florida, deserted them during the drive from Louisiana to Florida. The woman said the father was a friend.
ABC 25 reports that Perkins told investigators that she was traveling with the man and his children when they got into an argument in Orlando. The unnamed man then exited the vehicle.
“We don’t know what happened to the father of the children? He was left at some gas station on the turnpike?” Judge Charles Burton reportedly asked during a court hearing on Tuesday.
The children’s aunt told ABC 25 that the children’s mother passed away in January. The mother’s best friend, Perkins, showed up to help out with the children. The aunt said she wasn’t sure why they were traveling to Florida but added that Perkins generally showed up during stressful times.
Perkins has children of her own, but they are being raised by family. Family members said Perkins has mental health issues, including bipolar disorder, but they have problems getting her the help she needs.
“She’s not homicidal or suicidal, she’s just in a position of needing treatment where she can be housed long-term. Her being incarcerated or in jail will not support her treatment,” the family said.
On Tuesday, Perkins refused to appear before Judge Burton for a hearing but it apparently went on without her.
Meanwhile, the children are being held by the state Department of Children and Families for observation. The children’s grandfather told the outlet he was ready for his grandchildren to come home. Authorities made contact with the biological father but it’s unclear what came of it.
Perkins was arrested and charged with three counts of child neglect. She remains behind bars at the Palm Beach County Jail on a $30,000 bond.
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[Feature Photo: Miesha Perkins/Police Handout]
