Deputies: Mom left kids at Sanford 7-Eleven, told them to sleep in woods

SANFORD, Fla. — A family trip to the theme parks ended with a mother being arrested after police said she left her children at a 7-Eleven in Sanford and told them to sleep in the woods.

The Seminole County Sheriff's Office said 32-year-old Tiffany Buffkin was heading back to her home in Jacksonville on Monday with her boyfriend and two children when investigators said an argument happened.

According to authorities, the boyfriend dropped Buffkin and her kids off at the 7-Eleven on State Road 46 and left.

"The female then indicated to the 13-year-old that the argument was his fault and his punishment was to sleep in the woods for the night," said Kim Cannaday of the Seminole County Sheriff's Office.

According to deputies, one of the kids was in the back sleeping while the other child was in the front of the store trying to call friends or relatives, someone to come pick him up.

The teen eventually made contact with deputies, who spent 30 minutes talking to him and his brother, trying to find where his mother had gone.

That's when deputies said the mother stumbled down the walkway and began to get angry and violent.

Deputies said Buffkin was belligerent and uncooperative, saying she even tried to bite a deputy.

Buffkin was booked on five charges, including two charges of child neglect.

The children were turned over to family, and the case was forwarded to the Department of Children and Families.

WFTV