A Texas mother was arrested last week after leaving her two young children unattended for days so she could go on a cruise.
Law enforcement arrested Lakesha Woods Williams last Thursday on two charges of child endangerment.
Neighbors in her luxury high-rise apartment building in Houston reported seeing the 29-year-old leaving with her luggage on April 4 but “never saw her return,” according to the criminal complaint.
One of the neighbors contacted the Harris County Precinct 5 Constable’s Office about the children being left unattended. According to court records, it was not the first time she had left the children by themselves.
Lakesha Woods Williams, a 29-year-old mother of two young kids, is accused of leaving them home alone while she took a cruise.
Deputies reported finding a web camera and cell phone that the children said their mother used to check in on them.https://t.co/g7bokX1tzp
— Mycah Hatfield (@MycahABC13) April 12, 2024
The Houston Fire Department performed a wellness check on April 9 to discover that the children, a six-year-old girl and an eight-year-old boy were left unattended with the apartment in “complete disarray.” The complaint stated that there was food and trash everywhere and a “very potent smell of urine.”
The children appeared to have had no adult supervision and were left to fend for themselves.
“These children were left unattended for many days and put in harm’s way,” said Keegan Childers, the chief prosecutor of the 209th District Court. “For them to provide for themselves, feed themselves, take care of themselves, as well as, what if somebody breaks in? What if there’s a bad neighbor? Any number of horror, nightmare scenarios that could come up.”
According to deputies, they found a webcam and a cellphone that Williams used to check in on her children. They informed the officers that they had been left alone since April 4.
“Deputies tried contacting the Defendant to make the scene, but she was not cooperating and was switching up her story on her whereabouts,” the criminal report read.
Williams flew to Miami to board a cruise to Puerto Rico. When she returned home, she initially lied about her identity, according to authorities.
Child Protective Services were called for the children. Once they were given a clean bill of health by firefighters, they were placed into their aunt’s custody.
Williams is currently being held on a $25,000 bond. If she manages to post her bond, she would have to wear a GPS ankle monitor and adhere to a curfew.
