Man charged with child neglect still in county jail
A Cape Coral man remained behind bars Tuesday after being accused of child neglect last week.
Wade Brown Edwards Jr., 28, of 1424 S.E. 33rd Terrace, was being held at the Lee County Jail without bond. He was charged Sept. 17 with one felony count of child neglect without great bodily harm.
At about 5:18 p.m. Sept. 17, the Fort Myers police responded to a call about a toddler wandering around a parking lot unsupervised at 9804 Bernwood Place Drive. According to a report, officers made contact with the caller, who stated that he arrived home and noticed the child standing in the road.
Unable to find the boy’s guardians, the resident brought him to the clubhouse and called police.
Officers and the property manager unsuccessfully attempted to identify the boy and locate a guardian.
The child was transported to the Fort Myers Police Department, and the Department of Children and Families was notified. The report states that the youth appeared tired and disoriented and was wet from the rain. He needed a diaper change, which was taken care of, but no physical injuries were observed.
At 7:59 p.m., the department released photos of the boy in an attempt to locate his guardians. His identity was still unknown. At approximately 8:40 p.m., the toddler’s mother contacted police. Sara Harlow, 24, reported that she was working at Wendy’s and was told that her son was on the news.
Harlow immediately left work and responded to the police department.
According to the report, she stated that Edwards dropped her off at work at about 4:05 p.m. and her child was in the back seat of the vehicle. Harlow said she later spoke to Edwards, who told her that he picked up a friend at Bernwood Place and then picked up their daughter from school in Cape Coral.
She told police that she had believed Edwards, the friend and her son were at cheerleading practice in the Cape until she received a phone call informing her that her child was on the news.
Harlow said she immediately called Edwards, who told her that the boy was at home with his mother, the report states.
Harlow said she believed Edwards had so much on his mind that he forgot the boy was with him.
At about 11:15 p.m., Edwards responded to the police department to speak with detectives. Informed that he was a suspect in a child neglect investigation, Edwards declined to talk without an attorney.
According to the report, DCF later interviewed both Harlow and Edwards. Based on the agency’s investigation, it was determined that removing all of Harlow’s three children was in the best interest.
Edwards was taken into custody and transported to the jail. Booking records indicate that he was being held without bond on Tuesday for two violations of probation unrelated to the child neglect case.
Edwards has court appearances scheduled for Monday and Oct. 20.