One day after a 21 year-old Keala Simeona of Honolulu, HI reported finding a baby crying on the beach, she was arrested-now, police have said she is the newborn's mother.
Simeona was arrested Tuesday on grounds of filing a false police report, says ABC News. She has since been released, following a $250 posted bail.
Police will not go after any new offenses at this time.
The curious altercation began when Simeona told officials she was in her car, parked at east Honolulu's Sandy Beach between the hours of 11:30 p.m. Sunday and midnight. She heard a few people in the distance yelling. After the noise ceased, she claims she walked toward the water and found the newborn lying there. She took the child to the hospital.
Patricia McManaman, Director of the Department, said that the baby, weighing in at 8 pounds, had been born just before she was found. They could not determine an exact time of birth.
The child was alive and well, drinking formula at the hospital as police looked into the case as one of child abandonment.
Family Court will have to rule on whether or not the baby should be returned to her family, or if they should take the newborn into custody.
The Department of Human Services in Hawaii have released a statement about the dilemma, saying they will go to hearing soon.
They plan to determine parentage by getting a court order that forces Simeona to take a DNA test. They will also extensive perform DNA tests on the father of the child, if the father is found.
There has been no comment from Simeona's attorney at this time. No one has come forward to claim the child.
For now, Human Services officials are referring to the lost newborn as Baby Sandy.
