MIAMI, FL - A woman in her twenties has been arrested after being accused of leaving her four children, including a two-month-old, home alone while she went on a three-day cruise.
The mother, 29-year-old Nathalie Belizaire, has been charged with four counts of felony child neglect. She was arrested on Monday, September 28, when she arrived back in Miami after her three-day cruise to the Bahamas via the Carnival Conquest, according to the arrest affidavit reviewed by PEOPLE.
Authorities with the North Miami Beach Police Department (NMBPD) said the father of the infant saw a post on Belizaire's WhatsApp story on Thursday, September 24, depicting what seemed to be a "cruise ticket purchase." He spoke with Belizaire, and she told him she would be leaving the children with their great-grandmother.
However, when he went to her apartment on Sunday, September 26, he reported seeing the TV on and hearing the children talking inside, so he called 911. Police and Miami-Dade Fire Rescue responded and forced entry. Once inside, they found all four children, including the infant and a two-year-old, hiding together in the bathroom.
Police spoke with the great-grandmother, who told them that Belizaire said she'd be dropping the children off with her but never brought them around, while Belizaire's brother also told police that his sister messaged him on Saturday evening asking him to check on the children.
After police were unsuccessful in their attempts to contact Belizaire, detectives from NMBPD and the Miami-Dade Sheriff's Office responded to PortMiami, where she was scheduled to disembark, on Monday, September 28. She was taken into custody by U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers and released to NMBPD. Police allege that Belizaire "failed to provide the necessary care and supervision" for the children, thereby "exposing them to a substantial risk of harm."
Per court records, Belizaire appeared in bond court on Tuesday, September 29, where her bond was set at $10,000, and she was ordered to stay away from her children. All four kids are reported safe and in foster care. Belizaire has not yet entered a plea. Her arraignment hearing is scheduled for November 24. Her attorney said that she denies all the allegations against her.
The mother, 29-year-old Nathalie Belizaire, has been charged with four counts of felony child neglect. She was arrested on Monday, September 28, when she arrived back in Miami after her three-day cruise to the Bahamas via the Carnival Conquest, according to the arrest affidavit reviewed by PEOPLE.
Authorities with the North Miami Beach Police Department (NMBPD) said the father of the infant saw a post on Belizaire's WhatsApp story on Thursday, September 24, depicting what seemed to be a "cruise ticket purchase." He spoke with Belizaire, and she told him she would be leaving the children with their great-grandmother.
However, when he went to her apartment on Sunday, September 26, he reported seeing the TV on and hearing the children talking inside, so he called 911. Police and Miami-Dade Fire Rescue responded and forced entry. Once inside, they found all four children, including the infant and a two-year-old, hiding together in the bathroom.
Police spoke with the great-grandmother, who told them that Belizaire said she'd be dropping the children off with her but never brought them around, while Belizaire's brother also told police that his sister messaged him on Saturday evening asking him to check on the children.
After police were unsuccessful in their attempts to contact Belizaire, detectives from NMBPD and the Miami-Dade Sheriff's Office responded to PortMiami, where she was scheduled to disembark, on Monday, September 28. She was taken into custody by U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers and released to NMBPD. Police allege that Belizaire "failed to provide the necessary care and supervision" for the children, thereby "exposing them to a substantial risk of harm."
Per court records, Belizaire appeared in bond court on Tuesday, September 29, where her bond was set at $10,000, and she was ordered to stay away from her children. All four kids are reported safe and in foster care. Belizaire has not yet entered a plea. Her arraignment hearing is scheduled for November 24. Her attorney said that she denies all the allegations against her.
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