PARKER — A homeless couple has been arrested on charges of child neglect after police found them camping in the woods with their 2-year-old child exposed to the elements, according to Parker Police Department arrest reports.
Eric Colbert Kay, 37, and Corinee Ann Scott, 29, were arrested Wednesday after Parker Police discovered the couple’s campsite in the woods off the 4600 block of East Business 98. Both parents were charged with placing the child in danger of physical and mental injury when officers investigated the conditions of the camp, and the child was taken into protective custody, police reported.
Investigators said they expect additional charges to follow.
Though the couple did not have a permanent residence in Bay County, Parker Police were hesitant to call them “homeless.”
“It would be different if they were just down on their luck, but when you have the means to do better that’s when we step up,” said Sgt. Aaron Wilson. “We would help any way we could, but they had the means to help themselves.”
Police reported that witnesses had seen the couple and child coming and going from the camp site for weeks. The site had several blankets, but no tent or shelter.
When officers approached the couple at the site, Kay fled the scene on foot leaving behind Scott and the child. Kay was arrested hours later. After a search of Scott, officers found “enough U.S. currency on her, which she could have rented a motel room,” Wilson reported.
An exact amount was not released due to the case being an ongoing investigation, but Wilson said it was “more money that most people carry around.”
At the site, police found several bicycle parts that had allegedly been stolen. The various parts were in the process of being repainted for resale, police reported.
After further investigation, officers also found that the couple had been paying rent on a storage unit and were paying two cellphone bills while sleeping only feet from holes dug as bathroom trenches.
Kay and Scott appeared Thursday before a Bay County judge on charges of child neglect. However, investigators said additional charges are likely.
The child was turned over to the care of the Florida Department of Children and Families after immediate family of Kay and Scott, as of Thursday, declined to take custody, Wilson said.
“If they want to live in the woods, that is their business; but our job is to protect people,” Wilson said. “The child is the most important part in this. That child shouldn’t be out in those conditions.”