Overview
- A laundromat employee in Far Rockaway found the non-verbal child around 5:30 a.m., brought him inside, and called police; EMS took him to St. John's Episcopal Hospital and ACS assumed custody.
- Surveillance video shows the boy running near Seagirt Boulevard, and a tip to police led officers to the family residence where additional unattended children were found unharmed.
- The mother, identified as 30-year-old Leshea Harris, faces Brooklyn felony counts including first-degree burglary, first-degree robbery, assault, and weapons charges tied to a New Lots Avenue home invasion involving pepper spray and a stun device.
- Harris was also charged in Queens with four counts each of reckless endangerment and endangering the welfare of a child, with prosecutors alleging she left four children alone.
- Harris and alleged accomplice Amariah George were arraigned and released under supervision, and ACS is working to place the children as investigations in Brooklyn and Queens continue.