A mother is facing charges after detectives said she waded into the Hillsborough River and dropped her four-year-old daughter into it.
Shakayla Denson, 26, of Tampa, Florida, is charged with first-degree felony murder, aggravated child abuse and grand theft auto.
She’s being held in jail with no bond. Her next hearing is set for Wednesday, August 8.
Denson is accused of stealing a car from an auto repair shop, then parking the vehicle on North Rome Avenue, police said. Then she walked into the river at about 4 p.m. and left her daughter, Je’Hyrah Daniels, in the water, police said.
A member of the Tampa Police Department dive team discovered the unconscious child underwater at about 4:30 p.m., according to police. She was about 75 feet from shore. Je’Hyrah was pronounced dead at the hospital.
A resident, Vicki Walker, said she saw Denson in the river from her condo balcony. But at the time, Walker didn’t realise what the woman had just done.
“It’s really sad,” Walker said. “I don’t know the circumstances, I don’t know what’s going on in their lives, but it’s killing me.”
Denson was apprehended while walking not far from where the child was dumped in the river, Tampa Police Chief, Brian Dugan, said.
Denson has previous arrests for driving with a suspended license and theft charges dating back two years ago.
“Unfortunately at this point, there are a lot more questions than answers,” said Dugan, who called the situation a “completely tragic event.”
“It’s a crazy world we live in,” he said.
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