ALTAMONTE SPRINGS, Fla. — The Altamonte Springs Police Department said they are "hunting down" a missing woman in fear that her 7-month-old child is in "grave danger."
While new photos of Jessica McCreery, 21, and her daughter, 7-month-old Penelope Hogarth, show the couple is alive, Robert Pelton, of the Altamonte Springs Police Department, said medical professionals have evaluated the photos and have determined Penelope is in need of urgent medical attention.
Child Protective Services determined Penelope is malnourished and needs immediate help.
Pelton said McCreery is "on the run" with Penelope and they're doing everything they can to find the little girl. The little girl's mother is now facing charges.
“This missing person’s case has now turned towards a child neglect case and a full court press is on to take Penelope into custody for examination,” Pelton said.
Mark O’Mara, the attorney for David Hogarth, the man named a person of interest in the disappearance McCreery and Penelope, told Channel 9 Thursday night that the pair is alive.
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O’Mara gave Channel 9 the photos of McCreery and Penelope, which show the mother holding a piece of paper with the current date written on it.
He said McCreery and Penelope are in good health, but Pelton said in news conference on Friday that isn’t the case.
"The lack of cooperation by Jessica, she says her child is OK, but she will not do anything to prove that to CPS," said Pelton.
Police said they gave McCreery several chances to get the child evaluated by a doctor, but now they’re done with promises.
Pelton said a judge has signed an order to take Penelope into custody for medical evaluation, and authorities are actively looking for the two.
O'Mara told authorities McCreery had promised to take her child in for an evaluation on Friday, but police said that never happened, and they were given no documentation to show the child is doing well.
O'Mara on Thursday would not say where the mother and daughter are and did not say if David Hogarth knew where they went. He said his client does know McCreery is fine, and is relieved.
"They're healthy. It's documented by the pictures. Now we're going to document it hoever else we can, working with law enforcement," O'Mara said.
O'Mara said the mother was worried about possible involvement with the Department of Children and Families.
“When DCF gets into the picture, sometimes, people get worried,” O’Mara said.
Altamonte Springs police released a statement late Thursday night that read in part: "While this recent photo proves detectives earlier suspicions true that David Hogarth does know their whereabouts, it still leaves many questions unanswered as we continue our investigation into their disappearances."
The Florida Department of Law Enforcement issued a missing child alert Thursday for Penelope.
"(Hogarth) is nothing more than a person of interest who, for all intents and purposes, is not cooperating with our investigation," said Pelton.
According to police, Hogarth told them, "You will never find them."
Hogarth bonded out of jail Wednesday after his arrest on drug charges.
The drug charges are related to a grow house investigation during which marijuana plants were found Tuesday inside the couple's home on Adelaide Boulevard.
Hogarth, 46, did not answer any of WFTV's questions about where the mother and child might be.
"I would be very surprised and even shocked once this guy bonds out of jail that he is not being watched by law enforcement 24/7," WFTV legal analyst and former Chief Judge Belvin Perry said.