A 31-year-old Doral woman, Melissa Marie Luckett, was arrested over the weekend for child neglect after leaving her nonverbal son unattended for over 17 hours.
According to police, the incident came to light when a woman jogging nearby spotted a boy, approximately 9 or 10 years old, wandering outside wearing only a diaper. The boy appeared nonverbal and was close to traffic in the 6300 block of Northwest 114th Avenue, near The Courts gated community.
Doral police officers located the boy and confirmed his identity, eventually tracing him back to his mother, Luckett. Ring doorbell footage showed Luckett at home around 9:35 p.m. the previous night, and her last contact with her father was at 11 p.m. She was scheduled to fly to Virginia Saturday morning with her son but did not arrive.
Luckett returned home around 3 p.m. Saturday, wearing different clothing than seen in the footage. She was taken to the Doral police station for questioning. Her statement to detectives has not been released publicly.
The Florida Department of Children and Families initially took custody of the boy, but his grandfather was flying from Virginia to assume care. As of Monday afternoon, Luckett was no longer listed in the online jail database.
Authorities continue to investigate the circumstances surrounding the prolonged neglect.
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