Background: The Five Below store where authorities located a young girl who had wandered away from her residence in the Santa Clarita Valley, Calif. (YouTube/KTLA). Inset: Authorities taking the child into care (YouTube/KTLA).
A mother in California has been detained after her young daughter, clad in a diaper, was reportedly discovered roaming a bustling street. The girl, carrying an iPad, wearing a backpack, and accompanied by a small dog, caught the attention of sheriff’s deputies.
A passerby noticed the child around 10 p.m. on a Wednesday night, navigating through a busy intersection near Six Flags Magic Mountain amusement park in Santa Clarita Valley, roughly 35 miles north of downtown Los Angeles. The local news outlet KTLA identified the good Samaritan as Julius Rivera, who discovered the girl, estimated to be about 6 years old.
“I tried to approach her, but she kept running, so I contacted the authorities, and they located her in this area,” Rivera explained, referring to the parking lot of the Five Below store where police eventually found the child, according to the report.
“She was just wearing a diaper and a shirt, and a backpack, and she had her little dog and an iPad,” Rivera added.
The local Fox station KTTV, reporting from law enforcement sources, identified the mother as 28-year-old Michelle Negrellos. According to Los Angeles Sheriff’s Department records, she remains in custody.
Deputies used the girl’s iPad to determine her identity and residence, as reported by KTLA. The deputies reportedly found the girl’s mother asleep when they arrived at the home and noted that she “showed signs of intoxication, including slurred speech, lack of coordination, and a strong smell of alcohol.”
The mother appeared unaware that her daughter, who deputies said appeared to have developmental challenges, was not at home, the KTLA story said.
The girl was reportedly released to her father, who has not been publicly identified.
Negrellos was arrested for felony child endangerment, KTTV reported. The sheriff’s department, when reached by Law&Crime, declined to elaborate on the matter.
“This is still an active investigation,” a spokesperson said in an email. “There are no updates at this time.”
