A Florida mother broke down in court after authorities say she left her four young children, including a 2-month-old infant, unsupervised at home so she could take a Carnival cruise to the Bahamas.
Nathalie Belizaire, 29, of North Miami Beach, was taken into custody Monday as she stepped off the Carnival Conquest at PortMiami. U.S. Customs and Border Protection handed her over to local police. She now faces four counts of child neglect without great bodily harm.
Police say the case started when the infant’s father, Lether Bazile, spotted what looked like a cruise ticket on Belizaire’s WhatsApp story. He went to the apartment, heard children’s voices and a television through the blinds, and called 911 after she had claimed the kids would stay with their great-grandmother. Officers and Miami-Dade Fire Rescue forced entry and found all four children hiding together in the bathroom with no adult present.
Great-grandmother Denise Wilkes told investigators Belizaire said she would drop the children off before leaving town but never did. Belizaire’s brother later said she texted him Saturday night asking him to check on the kids. Multiple attempts to reach her at sea failed. Records show she bought a three-day Bahamas ticket that sailed Sept. 25.
Video circulating from her court appearance shows Belizaire in an orange jumpsuit, appearing emotional as the charges were read before Miami-Dade Judge Mindy S. Glazer. She has not entered a public statement and invoked her right to remain silent after the arrest. The allegations have not been proven in court.
The children included the 2-month-old and a 2-year-old; the ages of the other two have not been released in initial reports. Authorities have not said the children suffered great bodily harm. The case has drawn sharp online reaction over a parent leaving an infant and toddler alone for days while vacationing at sea.
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