‘Good Samaritan’ arrested after story about being given infant was false, SC cops say
UPDATE: The mother was arrested on Monday, Nov. 26. Jillene McMillan, 31, was charged with unlawful neglect of a child for “failing to provide any medical care,” after giving birth to the baby at home, and then giving it to “a stranger not in compliance with Daniel’s Law,” according to the Greenville County Sheriff’s Office.
Below is the original story.
The Greenville Police Department reported Nov. 19 it has arrested the woman it originally identified as a “Good Samaritan.”
Less than a week after police released information that a woman in a car, now identified as Monique Yolanda Jackson, was handed an infant by another woman, the department’s public affairs manager Donald Porter said “the entire story was fabricated.”
The 34-year-old Pensacola, Florida woman intentionally participated in the incident, as “part of (a) prearrangement to assume custody of the newborn,” police said.
Jackson was initially described by police as “a random passing motorist,” flagged down Nov. 10 by another woman who “unexpectedly handed her a newborn baby girl,” before the woman walked away. Police now say that is false.
Police reported that Jackson changed her initial statements about what took place, and on Nov. 16 she surrendered to them and was arrested.
Jackson was charged with filing a false police report, a municipal-level offense, according to police.
The infant’s mother has been identified by police and the Greenville County Sheriff’s Office is investigating her for any involvement, police reported. The mother’s identity has not been released.
The baby, who police believed was born either Nov. 8 or 9, was taken to an area medical facility and was “doing well,” police said last week.
Police reported that the baby was born outside of its jurisdiction, so the Greenville County Sheriff’s Office is leading the investigation.
This story was originally published November 19, 2018 at 4:58 PM.
