A Florida mother was arrested after allegedly leaving her 3-year-old son unattended at an apartment complex while she was miles away undergoing a cosmetic procedure. Neighbors in Doral, Florida, called police on June 27 after noticing the boy wandering unsupervised with only a cellphone. One resident dialed 911 after finding the child sleeping on her doorstep.
Bodycam footage from police captured their interaction with the boy and their attempts to locate his parents. “Hey, little buddy, what’s your name? Do you know where you live? Do you know where Papi and Mami are?” an officer asked. The officers went door-to-door at several apartments, asking residents if they were missing a child.
According to WSVN, One neighbor referenced a previous case, saying, “This is like the girl, the lady that left her daughter to go on vacation.” Viewers online expressed outrage at the mother’s behavior, with comments such as, “Unbelievable, you better believe this wasn’t her 1st time doing this,” and, “WTAF?! 3 years old?! To go and get your face hacked up? Unbelievable.”
Police eventually found the boy’s mother, 25-year-old Jessica Renteria, at a nearby surgery center. Renteria claimed she had left the boy in a friend’s care while she underwent the procedure, but the friend denied this, telling officers he “knows the defendant but was not asked to take care of the child”, Inside Edition reported.
Renteria, who had bandages on her face from the procedure, was taken into custody and charged with child neglect. Police later learned that she had been staying at an Airbnb in Doral with her son and had left him alone for six hours. Surveillance footage showed Renteria leaving the vacation rental at 10 a.m., and three hours later, her son was seen walking outside. Police were not called to the scene until 4:15 p.m. Renteria was released from jail on a $1,000 bond, and her trial is scheduled for December 2.