Woman and two teens charged with befriending new mother and kidnapping her two-week-old twins

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A woman and two teenagers were charged in Michigan after being arrested for allegedly kidnapping 14-day-old twins.

The Wayne County Prosecutor’s Office charged three Detroit residents – Curtis Lee Slay, 18, Davion Demetrius Sherman Chandler, 19, and Shantell Re-Azia Jones, 23 – in connection with the abduction.

On 20 August, just after 10pm, the trio allegedly kidnapped the infants from their hotel room in Livonia, when their 30-year-old mother briefly stepped out of the room, according to the office’s press release.

That’s when the twins’ mother called 911, sparking an Amber Alert. The following day, at 9.45am, the babies were recovered safely, as they were turned in to the Detroit Police Department.

The press release said Ms Jones allegedly “befriended the mother of the twins all the while intending to steal them from their mother.” The two teenagers helped Ms Jones, the police statement alleged.

The three have been charged with two counts of kidnapping, two counts of unlawful imprisonment, one count of conspiracy to commit kidnapping, and three counts of larceny in a building. Police previously said a fourth arrest was made in connection with the kidnapping, but the press release suggested the individual arrested was a minor.

“The Livonia Police Department has made four arrests related to the kidnapping of Montana and Matthew Bridges, who were the subject of an Amber Alert on August 21, 2023,” the previous statement said.

“It is hard to imagine a worse scenario for a new mother. The evidence in this case will show that these defendants engaged in a scheme to dupe the mother of these barely two-week-old babies. They allegedly promised her some much-needed assistance to gain access to her children with the express intent on stealing them,” said Prosecutor Kym Worthy.

All three were denied bond, court records show. They are all scheduled to appear at a probable cause conference on 31 August.

The court attorney who represented the trio at their arraignment told The Detroit News none of them had a criminal history, and added that Ms Jones is a single mother of two young daughters; she reportedly noted she turned herself in to police.