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Charges against foster mother accused of leaving toddler in hot car dropped

APOPKA, Fla. — Apopka police said they’re trying to figure out why a foster mother, accused of leaving a toddler inside a sweltering car, is being left off the hook.

Charges against Monique Williams, 53, have been dropped.

Last month, Williams was arrested for leaving a 2-year-old child in the car with the windows rolled up for nearly 20 minutes while she shopped at an Apopka Publix.

The charges were dropped despite the fact that she was seen on surveillance video shopping around the store, and police said she lied about quickly running in there.

The State Attorney’s Office said there was a problem with the evidence, but Apopka police said prosecutors never told them that.

“She claimed that she ran in to get some milk for the sick child. The video showed her walking in empty-handed, coming out with a basket full of food,” said Capt. Randy Fernandez with the Apopka Police Department.

Channel 9’s Renee Stoll emailed the State Attorney’s Office to find out why the charges were dropped and was told, “The evidence was not suitable for prosecution.”

“It’s very heartbreaking to our officers to see that they put a lot of time and effort into a case and it does get dropped,” Fernandez said.