Texas Mom Arrested After Allegedly Leaving Kids Home Alone While On Cruise
A Texas mother was arrested after she allegedly left her two young kids alone at home for nearly a week to go on a cruise, officials said.
Lakesha Woods Williams, 29, was charged with two counts of child endangerment last Thursday after authorities discovered her 8-year-old and 6-year-old kids alone in a high-rise apartment complex in Houston, the Harris County Precinct 5 Constable’s Office said in an April 12 Facebook post.
Williams’ neighbors alerted police after they saw her leave the apartment with luggage on April 4 and hadn’t seen her return, according to court records, KTRK-TV in Houston reported.
Her concerned neighbors told deputies it was “not the first time” they had been left at home unsupervised, according to the New York Post.
On April 9, deputies found the children alone in an apartment that was in “complete disarray” and reeked of a “potent smell of urine,” according to court documents, the Post reported.
The children reportedly told authorities that their mom had left for the cruise and had been staying in touch with them via text messages and a camera in the apartment. They said they didn’t know when she would be coming home.
Paramedics and Child Protective Services were called to the apartment to check on the kids’ health and safety, officials said. The children were placed in the care of a relative.
Williams returned from the cruise to Puerto Rico on April 10 and was arrested the following day.
Williams was booked into Harris County Jail on a $25,000 bond, according to jail records. She is scheduled to appear in court on Monday.
The Precinct 5 Constable’s Office didn’t immediately return HuffPost’s request for comment.
“We are still putting together the facts and circumstances of how these children were left alone for several days,” Constable Ted Heap said on Facebook. “But the important thing is they are safe now and those responsible should be held accountable for leaving these kids in an unsafe situation.”
