Two “critical missing” Atlanta sisters were found safe at an apartment complex in southwest Atlanta, Georgia, on Monday, August 17.
Atlanta police issued an Amber Alert for 4-year-old Zola Cooper and her sister, 11-month-old Norah Cooper, who were last seen with their babysitter, Lakesha Brown, on Saturday, in the area of James Avenue NW and James P. Brawley Drive NW.
Police received a tip that Brown may be staying with the children in a trailer parked at the complex in the Sylvan Hills neighborhood.
When detectives approached the trailer, they heard a baby crying inside. They entered the trailer and found the two girls with the suspect.
The Atlanta Police Department used Flock Safety cameras and cell phone data to help them pinpoint Brown’s location.
The girls’ mother said Brown is “an acquaintance” and it was her first time babysitting the sisters.
Around 6 p.m., Brown said she was going to take the girls to Walmart and then to a candy store. She said she would return no later than 10 p.m.
Brown stopped responding to phone calls and text messages after 10 p.m.
This is not the first time Brown has been accused of kidnapping. She was previously arrested in Jefferson County, Alabama, in 2021 for kidnapping a newborn boy, Atlanta police confirmed to FOX 5 Atlanta News.
Brown, 42, was charged with first-degree kidnapping after she snatched 4-day-old Kamarion Taylor from his crib in his Fairfield home.
According to 11Alive, Brown posted photos of Kamarion on social media and claimed she had recently given birth.
Calls to a tip line led police to a home at Woodward Estates in Lipscomb, Alabama. Adults at the home led police to the baby, who was in good health and reunited with his mother and grandmother.
Police in Alabama believe Brown had abducted other children previously.