Body camera footage captured the moment a Florida mother was arrested in bandages after leaving her toddler alone for hours so she could undergo cosmetic surgery.
Jessica Renteria, 25, was charged with child neglect after Doral Police found her three-year-old son wandering around an apartment complex in the 8400 block of Northwest 104th Avenue on June 27.
Surveillance video captured Renteria leaving her Airbnb rental around 10 a.m., then several hours later her son walked out the door with a cellphone, she said. VSN.
Neighbors called police when they found the boy in the hallway, and body camera footage shows officers working to find his family.
“Hey, buddy, what’s your name?” an officer asked. “Do you know where you live? Do you know where mommy and daddy are?”
Body camera footage shows Jessica Renteria (pictured) being arrested while still bandaged after leaving her 3-year-old son alone while she underwent plastic surgery.
Renteria (pictured), 25, was charged with child neglect after Doral police found her 3-year-old son wandering around an apartment complex.
Police asked neighbors if they had seen the boy before or knew who his parents were.
“Did you say you saw him here?” an officer asked one person. “My neighbor saw him there. He was sleeping,” the neighbor replied.
“Hi, are you missing any children by any chance?” an officer asked another resident.
A person on camera can be heard comparing the situation to that of Kristel Candelario, an Ohio mother who left her 16-month-old daughter home alone in a playpen for 10 days last summer so she could go on vacation.
“This is like the girl, the lady, who left her daughter to go on vacation,” said an officer.
Surveillance video captured Renteria leaving her Airbnb rental around 10 a.m., then several hours later, her son (pictured) walked out the door.
Neighbors told police they saw the boy sleeping in the hallway.
Police eventually found Renteria several miles away at a surgical center. The video shows her being arrested in the back of a police car, dressed in a gown and with bandages on her head.
Arrest documents obtained by NBC Miami She claims that Rentería said that a friend was supposed to take care of her son, which her friend denies.
“He (the friend) knows the defendant, but at no time was he told to babysit a minor,” court documents say.
Renteria appeared in court for a bond hearing in June, where she became emotional while wearing an orange jumpsuit and wearing her hair in long braids as the judge admonished her.
Renteria (pictured) claimed a friend was supposed to babysit her child, which her friend denies.
“I mean, honestly, if she had time to go and take care of her personal business at a cosmetic surgery center without any regard for the child, I’m concerned,” the judge said.
She was released on $1,000 bail on June 28. Her court hearing was scheduled for Sept. 24 and trial for Dec. 2.
