Arnett Johnson called the police after spotting the child alone just before midnight on Wednesday, April 8
Credit: local10; Miami Police Department
NEED TO KNOW
- A homeless man in Miami helped police safely recover a 6-year-old boy found wandering alone at night
- The boy’s mother, Annie Rivera, was charged with child neglect after allegedly failing to check on her son
- The child is now in the care of Florida’s Department of Children and Families as the investigation continues
A homeless man is being praised for aiding in the safe return of a missing child in Miami.
Shortly before midnight on Wednesday, April 8, Arnett Johnson spotted a boy wandering around the area of Northwest Seventh Avenue and 17th Street, local outlets 7 News and 10 News Local reported.
Johnson had been sleeping on a bench in Allapattah for six months following time served in prison.
“I'm looking around for a parent, but I looked and I don't see nobody,” Johnson recalled of the 6-year-old boy to 10 News Local. “So I'm like, what is this kid doing out here outside at this time of night?”
Credit: Miami Police Department
Feeling concerned for the boy's welfare, Johnson called the police and remained with the child until the authorities arrived.
“I did what I had to do, you know what I'm saying? Anybody would have probably done the same thing,” he said, per 7 News.
City of Miami Police responded to the scene shortly after being alerted. Johnson told 10 News Local that he felt a responsibility to ensure the boy was safe.
“God sent me there. I had to do what God say to do,” he told the outlet.
Miami police Officer Mike Vega described Johnson as a “good Samaritan” in a statement shared with 10 News Local, adding of the child, “We don't know what would have happened if he would have remained on the street.”
“It's dangerous every day out here, right here,” Johnson said, per 10 News Local. “Especially, we got homeless people all together, and you've got fixed minds — it's dangerous.”
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In an arrest report obtained by PEOPLE, investigators claimed that the boy said, “Mommy drop me off and left me.”
“We're talking about a 6-year-old that has, obviously, a learning problem, disabilities, that he shouldn't have been out on the street to begin with,” City of Miami Police Officer Vega told 7News.
Credit: Miami-Dade Corrections
Police were able to track down the child's family after his school responded to a flyer with his photo.
Authorities discovered that the boy and his mother, Annie Rivera, had recently moved into a property shared with another family, Local News 10 and 7 News reported.
Rivera, 30, allegedly told police that her child was in bed on Wednesday night, the outlets reported, citing an arrest report. The next day, she went to work and returned home without checking on her son.
At one point, a witness's child asked Rivera where her son was, with her allegedly responding that “she did not know and thought maybe the victim was at the godmother's house," per an arrest report obtained by PEOPLE.
Rivera was brought into custody on Thursday after police informed her that her son had been found wandering the streets, 7 News reported. She then appeared before Miami-Dade Circuit Court Judge Mindy S. Glazer on Friday, having been charged with child neglect.
The boy, whose name has not been publicly released, has been placed in the care of the Florida Department of Children and Families.
Judge Glazer ordered Rivera to have only supervised contact with him.
“I'll give her pretrial services, alternate bond $2,500,” said Glazer, per 7 News.
The mother also has to attend a dependency hearing, as police attempt to determine how her son ended up on the streets alone.
Rivera, who was crying in court, has since posted bond, according to 10 News Local.
PEOPLE has reached out to the Miami Police Department and the Miami-Dade Schools Police Department for further comment.
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