North Carolina woman accused of trading in two-year-old daughter with couple in exchange for a car
THOMASVILLE, NORTH CAROLINA: A North Carolina woman along with a couple have been arrested and charged after police said she sold her two-year-old child to the latter in exchange for a car.
Alice Leann Todd, 45, and married couple Tina Chavis, 47, and Vicencio Romero, 53, were arrested following a two-month-long investigation that began when Chavis arrived at an emergency room on July 23 with a two-year-old girl she claimed was her daughter, according to WBIR.
Chavis claimed to doctors at the Wake Forest Baptist Health High Point Medical Center that the young girl was having an allergic reaction. However, the staff noticed that the toddler had bruises on her body and notified the Thomasville Police Department, as well as children's services about her condition.
When questioned by the authorities, Chavis initially stood by the claim that she was the child's mother before changing her story and stating that she had adopted the young girl. But that story fell apart under scrutiny as well, as she could not produce any of the documentation of the adoption.
The toddler was subsequently placed in the care of another family member, and on further investigation, they learned that Todd, the child's biological mother, had traded the girl to Chavis and Romero for a 1992 Plymouth Laser back in 2018.
This past week, a Davidson County jury indicted Chavis, Romero, and Todd with felony counts of the unlawful sale, surrender, or purchase of a minor; all of them are currently being held in the Davidson County Jail, around 60 miles north of Charlotte, on a $50,000 secured bond. They are scheduled to appear in court on October 21.
Capt. Brad Saintsing with the Thomasville Police Department said they were still investigating the case and that more charges could be brought against the trio depending on what is found.