INDIAN RIVER COUNTY — An Indian River County mother was arrested Monday afternoon for leaving her child at home in a crib while she faked her own kidnapping.
Cameron Campbell, 20, of 7276 16th Street, Vero Beach, is now facing a single charge for child neglect.
Campbell reportedly sent an email asking a person familiar to her to “tell the police [she] was kidnapped and being held hostage,” according to the arrest report. The email also noted that the child was asleep in the crib.
The recipient of the email went to Campbell’s home and found the baby unharmed. The person noted Campbell was not home, but nothing in the house seemed to be disturbed or suggest Campbell had been kidnapped, the report shows.
The person who reported the email said Campbell “forcefully asked” for $140 the day before the incident, and reported Campbell has a history of drug abuse.
Authorities made contact with Campbell who said she was at McDonalds on 58th Avenue and 20th Street, and reported she was not in danger. She was later located in the Petco parking lot in the 5900 block of 20th Street.
Campbell told authorities that she left her residence with a group of friends she saw driving down the road. Approximately 20 minutes later, she sent the “distress email,” according to the report.
She told authorities her “kidnappers” tried to return her home, but saw law enforcement vehicles in the driveway and dropped her off at McDonalds instead.
The police report notes “Campbell did not display any emotion during the interview, and she did not display concern for [her child’s] welfare.”
She is being held in the Indian River County Jail in lieu of $5,000 bond.
