Florida couple caught injecting drugs while two-year-old daughter sat behind them in filthy, roach-infested car
Officials in Florida are set to charge a couple who reportedly injected opioids sitting next to a two-year-old girl in a car infested with bugs.
DeLand police on Monday said that the pair, identified as 30-year-old David Dexter and 28-year-old Christan Wilson, are facing prosecution for alleged child abuse and drug possession.
The couple, who according to Facebook got married last year in June, was caught when a police officer checked on them as they sat in a parking lot between South Stone Street and West Highland Avenue on Wednesday.
Reports state that it was 104F (40C) heat and the officer had approached them to ensure they were okay, according to ABC Action News.
When the officer reached the car, he saw drugs strewn across the seats.
He immediately apprehended the couple and an investigation was launched into the case.
Multiple needles were found inside the vehicle, with one just next to the driver's seat, containing some kind of liquid. The substance was later confirmed as opioids. A bottle cap holding the same substance was also found inside the vehicle.
Dexter, while talking to the officials, said that the drug they used was Dilaudid, which is used to treat moderate to severe pain, and was bought while the two-year-old was in the car.
The girl was reportedly wearing a soiled nappy and a shirt. The officers also noted an open wound on her neck and scabs on her legs, according to reports.
Dexter, while questioning, admitted that the child was injured after she stumbled into a lit cigarette.
Officers also said that they noted cockroaches among a number of different bugs in the vehicle scuttling across dirty clothes, waste food boxes and soiled nappies.
Fire services, who were called to the spot, deemed the child healthy and she is currently looked after by a family member.
The couple, meanwhile, is currently being held on a $5,500 bond in Volusia County Branch Jail, East Florida.