Memphis pair charged with kidnapping boy abandoned at Mississippi Goodwill store
Two people from Tennessee have been charged with kidnapping a 2-year-old boy who was found at a Goodwill store in Mississippi, federal officials said Thursday.
Jeremy Fitzgerald, 34, and Turliscea Turner, 29, both of Memphis, were charged in a federal criminal complaint, U.S. Attorney D. Michael Dunavant’s office said in a news release.
The complaint alleges that Turner babysat the boy overnight Sunday while Fitzgerald and the child’s mother went to Nashville. Fitzgerald left the woman in Nashville and demanded money from the child’s aunt for his return, federal officials alleged.
Fitzgerald, Turner and another person subsequently drove with the child to Southaven, Mississippi, the release said. During a stop, Fitzgerald took the child to a nearby Goodwill store and left him, the prosecutor’s office said.
The suspect vehicle was seen in Shelby County, Tennessee, on Monday. When law enforcement responded, Fitzgerald crashed and was taken to a hospital with minor injuries, the release said. Turner was found inside a grocery nearby, the release said.
Fitzgerald and Turner were taken into custody. It was not immediately clear whether they are represented by a lawyer who could comment on their behalf.
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