GLENDALE, Utah — An AMBER Alert issued for an 18-month-old child was canceled late Friday after the girl was found safe. Four people have been arrested and taken into custody, including the child's mother.
Police said the mother, Holly Angelina Smith, violated a court order to surrender the girl after the Utah Division of Child and Family Services took away the 32-year-old's custodial rights. The court ordered the girl into state custody for her safety and well-being.
Despite being at the hearing, and aware of the ruling, Smith left with the baby girl and received help from others.
Salt Lake City Police Department patrol officers began a search looking for both Smith and the child, receiving information from a witness that led them to the area of Redwood Road and Paxton Avenue.
When officers arrived at the area, they saw a person matching Smith’s description with a man hiding behind a shopping cart. Officers searched the shopping cart and found the child hidden under several blankets.
During the search, a glass pipe containing white and burnt residue was also found in the shopping cart.
Paramedics conducted a medical evaluation of the child and did not see any visible signs of injury.
Smith was taken into custody and arrested on multiple charges, including child kidnapping, child endangerment and providing false or misleading information to law enforcement.
Three others, Francisco Robles-Prieto, 47, Joey Jiminez, 41, and Eric Mathew Jimenez, 37, were arrested for felony obstruction of justice. Robles-Prieto was also arrested for child endangerment as he allegedly knew about the AMBER Alert but helped conceal Smith and the baby girl, as well as providing false information to officers.
