Mother Arrested After Leaving Four Children, Including Infant, Home Alone For 3-Day Cruise

A 29-year-old Florida woman, Nathalie Belizaire, has been arrested after authorities accused her of leaving her four minor children, including a two-month-old infant, alone at home while she travelled on a three-day cruise to the Bahamas.

Belizaire, a resident of North Miami Beach, is facing four counts of child neglect without great bodily harm following an investigation by North Miami Beach police.

According to Bush Radio Academy, police became aware of the situation after the father of Belizaire’s two-month-old child reportedly saw a WhatsApp post suggesting that she had purchased a cruise ticket. When he contacted her, she allegedly told him that she would take the children to their great-grandmother before travelling.

However, the man reportedly went to Belizaire’s apartment on Saturday night and noticed that the television was on and heard children inside the residence. Concerned about their welfare, he contacted emergency services.

Police officers and Miami-Dade Fire Rescue personnel subsequently responded to the property and forced their way inside. Authorities said they found all four children without adult supervision, with the children reportedly hiding together in a bathroom.

Police body-camera footage reportedly showed officers gathering the children and taking them outside to safety.

Investigators later contacted the children’s great-grandmother, who allegedly told them that Belizaire had informed her that she would bring the children over because she was travelling. According to police, however, the children were never taken to her home.

Belizaire’s brother also reportedly told investigators that she sent him a text message instructing him to check on the children on Saturday evening.

Police said attempts to reach Belizaire were unsuccessful during the investigation. Authorities later determined that she had purchased a three-day ticket to the Bahamas aboard the Carnival Conquest, which departed on September 25.

The arrest report alleged that Belizaire left all four children, including the two-month-old infant and a two-year-old child, inside the residence without adult supervision while she travelled out of town.

Authorities reportedly waited for Belizaire to return and arrested her after she disembarked at PortMiami on Monday. She was initially taken into custody by U.S. Customs and Border Protection before being transferred to North Miami Beach police.

Belizaire reportedly declined to give investigators a statement and invoked her right to remain silent.

According to the arrest report, investigators concluded that there was sufficient probable cause to allege that she failed to provide the children with the necessary care and supervision, potentially exposing them to a substantial risk of harm.

Belizaire appeared in bond court on Tuesday, where her bond was set at $10,000. She was also ordered to stay away from the children. Her attorney said she denies the allegations.

During the hearing, Judge Mindy Glazer expressed concern over the circumstances of the case, particularly because one of the children was an infant.

According to Bush Radio Academy, authorities said all four children were found safe and have since been placed in foster care, while the legal proceedings against Belizaire continue.