Mom accused of lying to police about 'missing' 7-year-old daughter with autism
PALM BAY, Fla. - The mother of the 7-year-old girl with autism who was reported missing on Tuesday has been arrested after she allegedly gave false information to police about her daughter's whereabouts.
Taylor Gordon, 23, was arrested and charged with the following after the incident that unfolded in Palm Bay on Tuesday, according to an arrest affidavit from the Palm Bay Police Department:
- Child neglect without great bodily harm
- Perjury (not in official proceeding)
- False information to law enforcement during investigation
- Misuse of 911
- Cause child to become delinquent
At 7:06 p.m. on Tuesday, Gordon called 911 to report that her daughter was missing. The mom said she believed her child ran off and cut her Project Lifesaver ankle band off in the process, which helps locate wandering loved ones, according to the affidavit.
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The Palm Bay Police Department responded by sending out information to media outlets, and also dispatching several agencies including the Brevard County Sheriff's Office and its air unit, three bloodhounds, 20 Palm Bay police officers and a K-9, and the Palm Bay Fire Department, the affidavit said. The agency also sent out emergency notifications via phone to Palm Bay residents.
They said the girl was last seen at around 6:30 p.m. in the area of Jaslo and Talmadge.
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Police also searched Gordon's home, except for one room because there was an "aggressive dog" inside and she said she had reportedly already searched inside it. She then moved the dog to another room while police continued to search the house.
The 7-year-old girl was ultimately found covered in dust and debris in a room in the home minutes after Gordon called police. The girl said she ran off and then came back inside the house, cut her Project Lifesaver band off and hid because she was "scared" of monsters, the affidavit said.
It remains unclear at this time where the girl was found due to the redacted portions of the affidavit.
Gordon allowed police to check out the doorbell camera footage on her phone, as she has several cameras placed around her home. This allowed police to see that Gordon had seen and spoken to her daughter just five minutes after she initially called 911 to report that the 7-year-old was missing.
The affidavit also said Gordon moved her daughter to a different room in their home.
About 10 minutes after the initial 911 call, Gordon walked police around the room she had just moved her daughter out of, the affidavit said.
The police search had gone on for three hours.
In a post-Miranda interview with police, Gordon said she did lose her daughter for a few minutes but then found her, the affidavit said.
"She said she didn't tell police because she didn't know what to do," the affidavit said.
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Police said they also confronted Gordon about how they saw on doorbell camera footage that she was talking to her daughter while simultaneously telling dispatchers on the phone that she couldn't find her.
"(Gordon) said that (her daughter) was probably going to run away so she just reported it," the affidavit added. "(Gordon) intentionally called 911 and gave false information to police in a missing person's case that caused a significant police response. She lied in a sworn statement that she did not know where (her daughter) was and watched (her daughter) and police search for (her daughter) for hours."
According to arrest records, Gordon has since been released from the Brevard County Jail.