A 28-year-old father from Texas was arrested after allegedly abandoning his young daughter in the garbage behind a restaurant because he did not want to care for her. Anferne Gray appeared in court on Tuesday, wearing a Nirvana T-shirt, and was formally charged with felony leaving a child and aggravated violence.
Gray is facing an aggravated assault allegation after reportedly striking the child’s mother. He is also charged with one count each of assault on a family member while obstructing breathing and assault on a family member with a prior conviction.
According to the criminal complaint filed in Harris County District Court, Gray unlawfully had care and control of the infant on July 22, 2024, when he “intentionally” abandoned it “in an enclosed dumpster area behind a restaurant.” The youngster was exposed to “an unreasonable risk of harm,” particularly because the child was left “unattended for three to four hours,” according to authorities.
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The paper also claims Gray failed to deliver the baby to a designated emergency infant care provider.
Gray appeared in court for a probable cause hearing on Tuesday, where authorities released additional information about the case, according to courtroom video obtained by Houston CBS station KHOU.
A county magistrate court noted that Gray reportedly left his kid unsupervised beside a motel pool in Pasadena, Texas, for around 20 minutes before returning.
“Then you picked up the child, walked about 1,000 feet to a nearby restaurant where you allegedly left the baby inside of a dumpster enclosure,” the judge stated at the time. “You left the child unattended there for three to four hours.”
The child survived after being taken to a hospital for treatment, however, her exact condition was not immediately known.
Officers from the Houston Police Department reportedly arrived at the scene and began searching for the child after the mother contacted 911 to report that Gray had not taken the baby to the fire station as promised.
According to Lawandcrime, Gray was also accused of telling someone that he no longer wanted to care for the baby.
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Gray told the court on Tuesday that he was mentally overburdened and unable to care for his kid, according to Houston ABC affiliate KTRK.
Gray is now being held at the Harris County Jail instead of a $100,000 bond. If he is released, he cannot contact his daughter or the child’s mother.
His next court appearance is slated for Wednesday.