PALATKA, Fla. — A Palatka woman was arrested after police said she tried to sell her daughter outside of a business downtown. When an employee wouldn’t buy the 18-month-old, the mother left the child and walked away, according to police.
Jessica Woods, 33, was charged with six felonies, including child neglect, child abuse, aggravated child abuse, selling a minor for money and abandoning a child.
Palatka police responded to a call from H&R Block employee Anita Fergus who said Woods left the child with her. Fergus said Woods went to the business on March 4, and Fergus tried to help Woods put an already soiled diaper back on the child since Woods didn’t have another one.
Police said Fergus told them Woods elbowed the child in the face when she became frustrated that the diaper’s adhesive wouldn’t stick because it was old. Woods then took the child to the bathroom where Fergus said she could hear the mother hitting the child, and then Woods left, according to the arrest report.
When Fergus showed up to work the next morning, she told police she saw Woods sleeping on top of the outside air conditioner, and the child was sleeping inside a shopping cart without a blanket. After asking if Fergus could purchase some things for the baby, Woods offered her $500 to buy the 18-month-old. When Fergus said no, Woods walked away and left the child behind.
Police arrested Woods two days later on March 7 at a house on Mango Drive in Palatka. Woods is being held in the Putnam County Jail on a $255,000 bond.
