Florida Couple Arrested After Accidentally Leaving Toddler At The Park

On Friday, March 22, Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office deputies reached out to the local community to help reunite a toddler with her family. According to WFLA, authorities believed the young girl couldn’t have been more than 2-years-old. The toddler was discovered wandering around the Haverhill Park in Palm Beach County all by herself. Authorities reported she was wearing a white and gold tutu, a pink short-sleeved shirt, and clear plastic shoes at the time.

With no recent outcries from parents reporting a missing toddler, authorities canvassed the area as well as performing a reverse 911 call with the hopes of figuring out who the child was, why she was alone, and where her parents were. While authorities dedicated several hours toward trying to identify the child and figure out who she belonged to, they were unable to do so.

For the time being, the child was placed under the care of Florida Department of Children and Families until they could figure out who she was and where she came from.

In fact, it was not until the following day, when her mother noticed the toddler was missing and reported it, that authorities were able to identify her and locate her family.

According to NBC2 News, Makenson and Jolanda Larose Alexandre told investigators they did not realize they had left their daughter behind when they left the park around 7 p.m. on Friday before heading home with the young girl’s six siblings for the night.

It was not until just before noon on Saturday that the mother noticed one of her seven children was missing and reported it to local authorities. At this point, more than 14 hours had passed since the parents mistakenly left their toddler by herself at the park on a Friday night.

Does anyone recognize this toddler? She was found walking alone in a South Florida parkhttps://t.co/AEu4PzzSJe pic.twitter.com/AxPxkpH83G

— Miami Herald (@MiamiHerald) March 23, 2019

In addition to continuing to provide care for the young girl, the Florida Department of Children and Families has also made the decision to step in and remove the other six children from the household until an investigation into their safety and well-being could be conducted.

Both Makenson and Jolanda have been arrested and charged with neglect after they mistakenly forgot their young daughter and left her at the park overnight by herself.

According to multiple media outlets, additional information on the parents or their children has not been made immediately available. All seven Alexandre children are safely in the care of DCF until the investigation into the parents is completed.