ATLANTA, Ga. (WDNews) — UPDATE: Two young sisters who were the subject of an AMBER Alert have been found safe, and the babysitter accused of abducting them has been taken into custody.
According to the Atlanta Police Department, 4-year-old Zola Cooper and 11-month-old Norah Cooper were found Monday at the Gateway South Apartment Complex along Sylvan Road in southwest Atlanta.
Police said officers were led to the area through cellphone data and information from the community. While searching the property, officers heard a baby crying inside a trailer. Officers entered and found both children along with their babysitter, Lakesha Brown.
Both girls were in good health and were taken to a hospital as a precaution.
According to police, Brown had gained the children’s mother’s trust over about a year before she was allowed to babysit the girls Saturday evening.
“The mother thought she was leaving her children in the care of someone she could trust,” Atlanta Police Lt. Christapher Butler said.
Police said Brown gave the mother information indicating she planned to return the children, but that did not happen. The children were reported missing Sunday.
Investigators also learned Brown is accused in a previous Alabama kidnapping case involving similar circumstances.
According to Atlanta police, Brown is the same woman who was arrested in Birmingham in 2021 after allegedly kidnapping a 4-day-old baby. Police said Brown has an outstanding Alabama warrant for failing to appear in court in connection with that case.
Jefferson County District Attorney Lynneice Washington said prosecutors plan to seek the revocation of Brown’s bond following her arrest in Atlanta.
“It’s sad. It’s scary and it’s sad. My heart goes out to the mother of those babies,” Washington said. “This is unacceptable, whether it’s in Georgia or Alabama. We have laws that are used to protect our children, and we also have laws that when they are violated, those adults have to be held accountable.”
Brown was taken into custody at the scene. Atlanta police had not announced the specific charges she will face in Georgia as of Monday afternoon.
The AMBER Alert has been canceled.
