Newborn offered for sale in disturbing Craigslist ad in Florida, 4-year-old sister to be given away 'for free': Police
KENDALL, FLORIDA: A concerning ad posted on classified advertisements website Craigslist offered an infant for sale for just $500 while also promising to give her elder sister for free.
The ad, which was posted with the headline 'Selling a baby—$500 (kendall fl),' read, "Selling brand newborn baby for $500. Baby is 2 weeks old. It sleeps, don't make noise at night. Formula and clothes will give to you. Can give you the baby 4 year old sister for free."
The poster claimed to be from a "quiet influential neighborhood" of the city, which has around 75,000 people, and said they worked for the Florida Department of Children and Families. "I don't want to be judged for not wanting these kids," they wrote.
Investigators are trying to determine if the ad was a hoax or if someone was really trying to sell their children online, and the Florida Department of Law Enforcement launched a probe into it as soon as it was posted last Friday, November 22.
Speaking about the case, FDLE spokeswoman Gretl Plessinger refused to delve into specifics but confirmed that they had an active investigation underway.
The Miami Herald reported that one woman who was suspected to have been behind the ad had been interviewed by FDLE agents, but that she denied any involvement. Investigators are now waiting for computer records that might help them positively identify the poster.
This is not the first time that someone has tried to sell their child online on Craigslist either. Back in 2017, Tennessee couple Deanna Lynn Greer, 37, and John David Cain, 26, were arrested after they tried to sell their five-month-old child for $3,000.
They arranged to meet the person purportedly buying the infant, but were met by an undercover agent after police received a tip about the sale and set up a sting operation.
Both were subsequently charged with child abuse, aggravated child neglect and offenses in connection with “Haley’s Law," with a warrant stating they "did knowingly place the child in threat of serious danger, bodily injury or death by selling the child to an unknown person, (an) especially heinous, atrocious and cruel act."