A woman from Barstow was arrested and booked into jail after she allegedly abandoned her baby with a pair of strangers, shortly after she tried to leave him behind a dumpster.
It happened Saturday afternoon in Adelanto, according to the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department.
Deputies were called to the intersection of Highway 395 and Bartlett Avenue around 12:40 p.m. for a welfare check, officials said.
A caller told authorities that a woman was seen placing a baby on the ground behind the trash cans of a business. When the woman realized she was being watched, she picked the baby up again and walked toward an apartment complex.
The woman was seen wearing an orange shirt and black shorts, and the baby was wrapped in a gray blanket and was wearing a blue beanie, the caller said.
When deputies arrived on scene, they found a woman that matched the suspect’s description, but she was alone. After being questioned by deputies, the 21-year-old mother led them to the apartment where she left her one-month-old son with two adult women who were strangers, the Sheriff’s Department said.
The baby was uninjured and healthy and was placed in the custody of San Bernardino County Child and Family Services. The mother was arrested and booked into jail to await charges for child abuse with possible great bodily injury or death.
She’s currently being held at the High Desert Detention Center in Adelanto, where she’s being held on $60,000 bail. She was scheduled to appear in court to face her charges on Tuesday.
Anyone with information about the investigation is urged to contact the Victor Valley Sheriff’s Station at 760-552-6800. Anonymous tips can be made online or by calling 1-800-782-7463.
California has a program called the Baby Safe Surrender Program which allows mothers to surrender their child at approved sites within 72 hours of their birth, confidentially and without fear of prosecution. If you are a new mother in need of services or help, you can call the program’s helpline at 1-877-222-9723.
