Police: Mother charged with leaving toddler in car, stealing clothes from Mayfield Heights store

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MAYFIELD HEIGHTS , Ohio (WJW) — Police said a 24-year-old Cleveland woman left her toddler in the car at a shopping center while she went into a store on the afternoon of Sept. 29.

The 19-month-old boy activated the vehicle’s OnStar system and was in contact with its agents for several minutes, but he was too young to speak, according to a police report obtained by FOX 8 News.

Police were then called to the car’s location in the Golden Gate Plaza along U.S. Route 322 for a welfare check.

Police found the toddler inside the SUV, standing on its front seat. They later determined he was OK.

The boy’s mother, identified as 24-year-old Brendii L. Jones of Cleveland, then came “running to the vehicle” from a clothing store. She told officers she had gone into the store to get a “cup” for the boy. She then went back in the store with the child.

Officers then learned Jones had a felony warrant from Wickliffe police on a charge of fleeing and eluding. When Jones didn’t come back out of the store, police found her inside near the front entrance.

They noticed she had rolled-up clothing, with price tags still attached, stuffed in her waistband. Inside her purse, they found a round, silver magnet which she admitted she used to bypass the store’s security sensors.

Jones contacted a family member to collect the child. She was then arrested and booked at the jail.

Inside her car, officers found clothes from a nearby store, with tags still attached, valued at more than $400. Store clerks noted a child’s jumpsuit had also been stolen, but police did not find it.

Jones is facing misdemeanor counts of child endangering, theft and possessing criminal tools, Lyndhurst Municipal Court records show. She’s due in court on Nov. 5.

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