The homeless mother of an autistic and non-verbal toddler, who was found wandering barefoot in the parking lot of a Far Rockaway laundromat at 5:30 a.m. on Tuesday, Oct. 7, was arrested the night before after allegedly committing a home invasion with her accomplice in Brooklyn, according to the Queens District Attorney’s Office.
Leshea Harris, 30, was arraigned in Queens Criminal Court on Oct. 8 on a complaint charging her with four counts of endangering the welfare of a child after she allegedly left her four children, including a 4-year-old boy, at the Beach 25th Street apartment of Amariah George, 30, with her four children, while the two mothers went to East New York to rob a woman on New Lots Avenue, according to the criminal complaint. George was also arraigned in Queens Criminal Court on Oct. 8 on four counts of endangering the welfare of a child.
The young boy was found at a laundromat located at 25-15 Seagirt Blvd. and was transported by EMS to St. John’s Episcopal Hospital, where he remained in the care of staff. The NYPD released a photo of the boy and got a tip later in the day that led police from the 101st Precinct in Far Rockaway to George’s apartment, where they found seven other children who were left unattended. That same day, the two mothers, Harris and George, were being arraigned in Brooklyn Criminal Court on charges of burglary, robbery, assault, criminal trespassing, criminal mischief, weapons possession and other related crimes.
According to the criminal complaint, on Monday, Oct. 6, just after 9 p.m., Harris entered an apartment at 455 New Lots Ave. through a window while George broke through the common door of the residential building and headed to the same apartment. Harris tried to let her accomplice into the apartment but the tenant tried to keep the door closed. George allegedly sprayed her in the face with mace. She tried to fight off the two intruders who punched her repeatedly in her body. Harris attempted to use a taser on the tenant before they grabbed a bag full of clothing and left the apartment.
Police from the 75th Precinct spotted the two women nearby and took them into custody. At their arraignment, the Brooklyn District Attorney’s office requested bail, but the judge granted them supervised release. They were then handed over to detectives from the 101st Precinct in Far Rockaway and returned to Queens.
Harris was arraigned on Wednesday before Queens Criminal Court Judge Lana Schlesinger, who ordered her to return to court on 10/17. Her case is not bail eligible and supervised release was requested and granted.
George was arraigned on Thursday morning before Queens Criminal Court Judge Sharifa Nasser-Cuellar, on a complaint charging her with four counts of endangering the welfare of a child. Her case is not bail eligible and she was granted supervised release.
