Woman arrested for leaving 2-year-old boy with homeless sitter
A Florida woman was arrested after she told police that she left a little boy in the care of a homeless baby-sitter because she needed to make a quick trip out of town.
Tampa Police were called to an apartment building near Busch Gardens following reports that a child was outside unattended.
When officers arrived they found a 2-year-old boy sitting outside an apartment door with a blanket, sippy cup and half-eaten Lunchable, a police report states.
When deputies went inside the apartment, they found a computer mouse with an attached cord tied to a bedroom door to keep it secure. Authorities said the door had enough space for a small child to get in and out. Inside the bedroom was a cheese snack, a jug of iced tea, a Gatorade and pull-up diapers.
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Police believe the child had been outside by himself for a few hours.
According to the report, 22-year-old Cotisha Long-Green was supposed to be looking after the child but she was in another state.
Cotisha Long-Green told police that she asked a woman she met off the street to watch a little boy while she traveled out of state. (Tampa Police Department)Long-Green, who is the guardian of the boy, said she had to catch a flight early in the morning on Aug. 21 because she had a court hearing in Illinois. She didn't return until late on Aug. 22.
Long-Green said that she asked a homeless woman known as "Fe Fe," or Felicia, to look after the child while she was gone. Long-Green said she had met Felicia on the street and let her nap at her apartment a few times.
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According to the report, Long-Green didn't know Felicia's last name or a phone number she could be reached at. Long-Green also told police that she suspected Felicia was an addict.
"She knows for certain that Felicia smokes marijuana," the report stated.
Authorities said Long-Green's cousin lives nearby but she never asked her cousin to watch the child. She also never told the boy's mother or his family members that she had to leave town.
According to neighbors, they have never seen a woman fitting Felicia's description going in and out of Long-Green's apartment.
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Tampa police spokesman Steve Hegarty told the Daily News that police have not been able to track down Felicia and the boy is now with the Florida Department of Children and Families.
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