Northampton County’s district attorney is warning the public about a 22-year-old woman who has raised at least $10,000 in numerous fundraisers on an allegedly false claim that her baby girl has juvenile leukemia. Arielle Lucinda Brooks -- who also goes by the name Arielle Odom, Luci Brooks and Arielle Lucinda Poor -- has been raising money for her daughter, Myah, since shortly after Myah was born in July 2010, District Attorney John Morganelli said. Brooks, 22, claims Myah suffers from juvenile leukemia, but Morganelli said “it is our belief the baby is perfectly healthy.” The district attorney announced he will be charging Ms. Odom/Brooks/Poor soon.
It turns out Ms. Odom/Brooks/Poor has been in trouble with the law before.
In 2009, Brooks received a suspended sentence for abduction and contributing to the delinquency of minors.
Before that, on April 6, 2008, she called and sent text messages to a Berks County man she knew, claiming she had been kidnapped by four assailants who forced her into a van, stripped her and bound her with tape.
The man reported the allegation to police, and police launched a dragnet for the purported van that involved three state police barracks, a state police helicopter, and five municipal departments.
Alas, Police located Ms. Odom/Brooks/Poor at home, where they traced her cellphone, records show.
Brooks gave a written statement saying she had been kidnapped -- and raped -- by each of four men, with one also burning her with a cigar, records say. A medical examination showed no signs of injury, and police said they accounted for Odom/Brooks/Poor's whereabouts during the time she claimed she had been abducted.
Her punishment? Odom/Brooks/Poor was placed on one year of probation and ordered to do 25 hours of community service by Northampton County Judge Anthony Beltrami.
Sources:
http://www.mcall.com/news/local/parkland/mc-northampton-sick-baby-fraud-myah-20110921,0,4807043.story
http://www.lehighvalleylive.com/breaking-news/index.ssf/2011/09/da_claims_local_mom_is_alleged.html
No comments:
Post a Comment