An 18-year-old babysitter allegedly stole a car from the mother of the children she was supposed to watch, drove them from Florida to Wisconsin and then left them alone in a park, according to the Bay County Sheriff’s Office.
Adalyn Jean Burkett of Callaway, Fla., was arrested Monday along with Marquan L. Edwards, 22, of Milwaukee, Wisc., said authorities.
Burkett was reportedly a friend of the mother of 2-year-old DeKarsen Middleton and 1-year-old Delyla Middleton. She was with her on the evening of June 23 in Callaway, when she told her that she would watch the children overnight, per police. While the mother told Burkett she could use her vehicle for the night, she asked that Burkett return it by the morning of June 24.
“Upon contacting Burkett, the mother learned that she was no longer in Bay County and had left the state with both the vehicle and the two children,” said the Bay County Sheriff’s Office.
As the office’s Criminal Investigations unit began looking into the report, investigators discovered that Burkett had left for Milwaukee with Edwards. They had traveled from Panama City, Fla. to Milwaukee on June 23 and into the morning of June 24. That trip is more than 1,023 miles and it takes around 16 hours.
By the evening of June 24, an arrest warrant was issued for Burkett for Interference with Child Custody and Grand Theft of an Automobile and Bay County contacted the Milwaukee Police Department. A Missing Child Alert was also issued by the Florida Department of Law Enforcement (FDLE) on June 25 and it was published by media outlets.
“When Burkett and Edwards learned of the Missing Child Alert, the suspects took both children and dropped them off in a public park in a neighborhood of Milwaukee, leaving them alone in a major metropolitan city,” said the Bay County Sheriff’s Office. “Investigators believe Burkett and Edwards wanted to distance themselves from the investigation and possible arrest.”
Eventually the infants were found by Milwaukee police. Additionally, the United States Marshal Service in the Milwaukee area was notified of the investigation and it provided information on Edwards. As of June 25, an arrest warrant was obtained on Edwards for Principal to Interference with Child Custody.
Both were arrested Monday and authorities are investigating the incident.
In June 2020, the Marathon County Sherriff’s Office in Wisconsin issued an alert for the then 15-year-old Burkett. It said she went missing from her home in Mosinee that May.
“Adalyn is believed to have left willingly and may be avoiding law enforcement officers, but due to her age is considered endangered and we are actively seeking to return her safely to her guardians,” said the alert. “The latest information we received is that Adalyn is staying somewhere in the Rufus King neighborhood on the north side of Milwaukee.”
Last March, Fox 6 in Milwaukee reported that she had last been seen in Milwaukee on Nov. 10, 2021 and was believed to be in Florida.
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