The parents 'didn't realize' they had left their toddler daughter at the park, authorities said.
A Florida couple has been arrested after leaving their toddler daughter in a park and not realizing she was missing for 14 hours, authorities said.
Jolanda Larosa Alexandre and Makenson Alexandre were each charged with one count of child neglect and have been released on $3,000 bail, according to Palm Beach County online records.
The 2-year-old was found Friday around 8 p.m., wandering Haverhill Park by herself, deputies said. She was wearing a pink T-shirt, a tutu and clear plastic shoes. Authorities searched the park looking for her parents and drove cruisers through the neighborhood, making announcements on their public address systems.
Sniffer dogs were also brought in, but police efforts were unsuccessful in locating the child's mother and father, the department said in a statement.
Finally, deputies posted a photo of the girl on the department's Facebook page, asking if anyone knew the baby.
Around 11:30 a.m. Saturday, the girl's mother called 911 to report her daughter was missing, according to an arrest report. Deputies went to the family's apartment, arrested the parents and took custody of seven children, who have been placed with the Department of Children and Families along with their 2-year-old sister, according to the report.
Both parents told investigators they had taken their eight children to the park Friday evening to "let the children run around and play for about an hour," the arrest report said. The mother said she told the kids to get in the family's van, and they drove home, where the children played outside for a while, the report said.
Jolanda did not notice the 2-year-old was missing until the next day, she told investigators. The father said he woke up Saturday morning, told the children to get ready to go the park and then loaded them into his van. He didn't notice the toddler wasn't in the vehicle until he was almost at the park, he told deputies, according to the report.
The parents said they searched frantically for the little girl, then called 911 when they couldn't find her.
While being questioned by deputies, the mother "was crying and very upset and stated that she usually checks on the children before she goes to bed, however last night she did not," the arrest report said.
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