A Florida father was arrested after he allegedly left his 9-year-old daughter and two other young children -aged 10 and 11- alone on an island even though he was supposed to be supervising their camping trip.
Leonard Nile, the father, was reportedly tasked with watching the children during a Memorial Day trip. He allegedly left the three children on Samson Island, where a pair of Good Samaritans eventually found them screaming for help late Saturday night.
The children were alone for approximately four hours in Satellite Beach, Florida.
Robin Suzanne, the mother of the 9-year-old girl, said she spent all day crying on Sunday after she learned of her daughter's harrowing experience the day before.
"I cried so much Sunday that I can’t cry anymore. Now, I just want answers," she told Fox35.
She said the children became frightened after being alone and eventually went to the dock where they started yelling for help.
"I couldn’t get there fast enough to make sure my daughter was okay," she told the outlet.
According to Ms Suzanne, Mr Nile told the little girl that he needed to grab something from his truck - which was the last time the children saw Mr Nile.
Mr Nile was eventually arrested and charged with three felony counts of child neglect without great bodily harm. At one point, Mr Nile called 911 and said he had lost contact with the children.
Responding officers said Mr Nile was emotional when they arrived, and that his mood was fluctuating wildly. They describe him yelling and even crying while discussing the missing children. One officer also noted he could smell alcohol on Mr Nile's breath and suspected he was intoxicated.
Mr Nile told police that he and a woman he was with, Kayla Campbell, were planning to camp that evening, and he had returned home to pick up his camping gear. He also mentioned that he left two — not three — children on Samson Island with a dog, the Space Coast Rocket reports.
He and Ms Campbell drove out to the island to help a responding officer find the children.
The responding officer said it was difficult to gather a comprehensible statement from the pair due to their suspected intoxication. He also noted that both seemed convinced that only two children were out on the island, when there were actually three. The Good Samaritans who helped the children confirmed to police there were three youngsters left on the island.
The police report claims Mr Nile admitted to smoking marijuana, using cocaine, and drinking beer before he met with police on the night of the children's disappearance. He also had medicine that one of the children needed sitting in his truck, separated from the child.
A judge set his bond at $7,500.
