A couple in West Virginia tried to sell their baby to a woman, allegedly to buy drugs. The three-month-old baby is the son of Jonathan Flint and Ashley Harmon, a couple in their twenties, who were arrested on Friday when caught trying to sell the baby for $1,000.
The Police Department in West Virginia reported that the couple first tried to sell the baby for $1,000 and then lowered the offer to $500, to gain money to buy drugs. Authorities were shocked when this case arrived in their hands and considered the drugs motto since the baby was suffering from drug withdrawal. The couple is now facing charges of child neglect and attempting to sell a child.
Flint and Harmon apparently offered the baby to Carolyn Redden, a neighbor who knew the father, Jonathan Flint. The lady said that the infant appeared sick, and after saying no, the parents of the baby left him to go supposedly to the store but never came back.
Redden decided to call 911 when the child could not stop crying and shaking, symptoms that according to the Police report is a match with babies that have been exposed to drugs. Staff from the Emergency Medical Services evaluated the infant, and now he is in custody of Child Welfare.
Child neglect can include any maltreatment related to the failure to provide care and protection to the infant. Inadequate treatment can also include abandonment, and that’s why the couple is facing child neglect charges.
A #WestVirginia couple tries to sell 3-month-old baby for drugshttps://t.co/NfuqverhXv
— KIRO 7 (@KIRO7Seattle) June 5, 2016
The odd family lived in Rupert, West Virginia in the Greenbrier County, and apparently they left two other children who were older than the baby but still the biggest one may be three years old. It was not revealed by authorities if the other kids were alone or not, although it seems they were under someone’s care.
Both Harmon and Flint are now under arrest in the Southern Regional Jail in Fayette County, and the case is currently under investigation. It is not known if the couple has an attorney to carry on their defense or not.
Authorities stated in local press:
We are extremely grateful for the assistance provided to us by the Child Protective Services Workers who worked diligently to insure the health and safety of this innocent infant child and helped us identify and locate the individuals who allegedly attempted to sell this child.”