ST. LOUIS COUNTY, Mo. – A Florissant mother is charged with two counts of child abuse and one count of kidnapping after police say she beat her 5-year-old boy, locked him in a closet and left him tied up for hours alone.
According to the St. Louis County Police Department’s probable cause statement, police were notified of the abuse by the defendant’s friend.
The friend told investigators she had spent the night at Alease Chambers’ home and witnessed her administer “brutal” punishments to Chambers’ 5-year-old son.
The friend said Chambers had the 5-year-old ball up his fists and she would then beat the child’s knuckles with her phone and force the child to perform wall squats.
In addition, the friend told police that Chambers locked the boy in a closet and pushed a dresser in front of the door to trap him there.
Around 3 a.m., the friend woke up to screaming and crying coming from downstairs. She noticed the 5-year-old was not in the bedroom with his brothers.
Police said the friend went downstairs and found the boy on the floor, with his hands zip-tied behind his back and his pants around his ankles. The boy was covered in marks and bruises, which the friend recorded on her phone to show police.
According to investigators, the other children in the home said their mother routinely beats the 5-year-old with belts, cords and hangers and makes the boy stay in the closet.
The 5-year-old victim was hospitalized for malnourishment and physical injuries.
Police said the victim’s mother admitted leaving the boy zip-tied for at least two to three hours. She further admitted using belts, cords and other items to punish her son for sneaking food.
The St. Louis County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office charged Chambers with two counts of abuse or neglect of a child and one count of first-degree kidnapping.
Chambers remains jailed on a $250,000 cash-only bond, and she made an initial appearance in court on Wednesday.
St. Louis County Prosecuting Attorney Melissa Price-Smith released the following statement to FOX 2.
“I am grateful for the compassionate and courageous friend of the defendant who documented this alleged abuse and came forward to seek justice, as well as for the skilled St. Louis County detectives who investigated the case,” Price-Smith said. “Our office will do everything in our power to hold this defendant accountable for these unconscionable actions against this vulnerable child and to comfort and empower the child through the difficult process ahead.”
Chambers is due back in court for a bond reduction hearing on Feb. 26.