Stay up to date with notifications from The Independent

Notifications can be managed in browser preferences.

Florida mom arrested for leaving three-year-old son alone in apartment to go and get plastic surgery

Jessica Renteria was arrested and taken to jail still dressed in a robe and head wrap from the cosmetic surgery clinic

Michelle Del Rey
Sunday 01 September 2024 22:15
Jessica Renteria was arrested in June on charges of child neglect after she allegedly left her three-year-old son at an apartment complex to get plastic surgery
Jessica Renteria was arrested in June on charges of child neglect after she allegedly left her three-year-old son at an apartment complex to get plastic surgery (Doral Police Department)

Support truly
independent journalism

Our mission is to deliver unbiased, fact-based reporting that holds power to account and exposes the truth.

Whether $5 or $50, every contribution counts.

Support us to deliver journalism without an agenda.

Louise Thomas

Louise Thomas

Editor

A Florida mother was arrested for leaving her three-year-old son alone in an apartment when she went to get plastic surgery.

Jessica Renteria, 25, was taken into custody on charges of child neglect following the incident back on June 27.

Police had responded to the woman’s apartment complex in Doral around 4.15pm that afternoon after tenants found the child wandering the complex alone.

Now, police have released bodycam footage from the incident, showing an officer finding the child and asking where his mother is.

“Hey, little buddy, what’s your name?” the officer asks the child. “Do you know where papi and mami are?”

Officers went to several apartments looking for the boy’s mother.

“Hello, by any chance, are you missing a kid?” an officer asked one man.

As the search ensued, one tenant commented: “This is like the girl, the lady, that left her daughter to go on vacation.”

A three-year-old boy was left alone while his mother went to get plastic surgery
A three-year-old boy was left alone while his mother went to get plastic surgery (Doral Police Department)

“Yes,” a neighbor responded.

Police eventually located Renteria a couple of miles away at a cosmetic surgery center.

There, she allegedly told officers a friend was supposed to be watching her son.

When contacted, the friend said the mother had not told him to take care of the boy.

Renteria was arrested and taken to jail still dressed in a robe and head wrap from her surgery.

Police said that the child had been left alone for six hours, with one tenant finding the little boy sleeping in a corner of the apartment complex.

Renteria’s trial is set for December 2.

The incident comes after a mother in Houston hit headlines back in April when she was accused of leaving her children alone at an apartment complex to go on a cruise.

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in