Alicia Moore, a 24-year-old resident of Orlando, Florida, was allegedly shoplifting inside the Oviedo Mall when her car caught fire with her two children inside.
According to local authorities, Moore parked the car outside a Dillard’s department store and left her two children, neither of whom were old enough to care for themselves, inside it as she went into the mall and allegedly began shoplifting alongside an unnamed man.
While she left the store, she saw her car fully engulfed in flames and dropped the items that she had allegedly been attempting to shoplift. Fortunately for her children, Good Samaritans nearby saw her car catch fire and rushed to the rescue, saving the children from the flames. Sadly, one of the children suffered first-degree burns to her face and ears. After being rescued from the flaming vehicle, the two children were taken to Orlando Health Arnold Palmer Hospital for Children to be treated. Moore has been charged with aggravated child neglect and arson.
The video released by the City of Oveido shows the fire tearing through the car, exploding vehicle windows and the windshield. The fire totaled the vehicle.
The police, commenting on the incident, noted that the children likely would have been injured had Moore been paying attention to them rather than neglecting the helpless kids by leaving them alone in the car, saying, “It is undetermined what ignited the fire, however, if Moore was not being neglectful, it is unlikely [the child] would have been injured.”
Further, the arrest report indicated that Moore contributed to her children’s injuries despite the cause of the fire not being known because “the fire occurred during the commission of a felony by Moore.”
According to records from the Seminole County Sheriff’s Office, Moore has been charged with seven total crimes. The first of those charges is child neglect with “great bodily harm,” which is an aggravated neglect offense. Her court date for it is August 8th. She also faces a first degree arson offense related to the car incident.
When arrested for the arson and neglect situation, police realized Moore had other outstanding warrants, and was charged with those offenses as well. Those four charges are two counts of petty theft, one count of battery of a person over 65 years old, and one count of assault of a person over 65 years old. Moore is being held on a $48,000 bond. Her public defender demanded the bail be reduced “to a reasonable and affordable amount.”
Featured image credit: Seminole County Sheriff’s Office
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