Melissa Barnes prepares a bottle of bleach for her 13-month-old baby
Posted on06/07/24 at 08:00
- Melissa Barnes Prepares Baby Bottle with Bleach for Her 13-Month-Old
- Woman Described as ‘Negligent’
- Commits Crime Against Her Baby
Authorities in Hillsborough described Melissa Barnes’ actions as «disturbing, dangerous, and negligent.»
This came after they proved she had prepared a baby bottle with bleach for her 13-month-old child.
Fortunately, the little one did not ingest the food containing the chemical, and a relative was able to report the mother in time, who is now behind bars.
Barnes and her baby lived in a shed in a neighborhood in Hillsborough County, Florida.
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The place, according to the complainant’s sworn statement, was «cold, messy, and unsanitary»; it lacked electricity and was unfit to house a baby.
On January 2, according to the police report, a relative of Melissa Barnes decided to visit her.
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Her greatest surprise was finding her trying to feed her little one amid the chaos of the place.
Seeing that the baby rejected the bottle, the visitor decided to take the baby outside and try to feed her.
When she had no success, Melissa’s relative checked the baby food, smelled a strong odor of bleach, and confronted the mother, said the Hillsborough Sheriff’s Office in a statement.
The woman left the place but reported the case to the authorities as she left.
She did not believe the food could become contaminated with bleach simply by having washed the bottle with the chemical.
From that night on, the Department of Children and Families removed the baby from Barnes’s care and temporarily handed her over to another relative.
During the investigation against the 22-year-old mother, detectives allegedly found bleach-based disinfectants and paint inside the shed.
Agents took samples of the food and sent them to the FBI lab, where they allegedly confirmed the presence of chlorine in the bottle.
With these results, on May 28, agents requested an arrest warrant for Barnes, which was executed last Monday, June 3, in Highlands County.
For now, Melissa Barnes is in jail charged with child abuse and child neglect. She is waiting to be transferred to Hillsborough to continue with her criminal process.
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Melissa Barnes Baby Bleach PHOTO: MundoNOW