A 21-year-old woman in the US state of Texas has been arrested for attempting to sell her baby on Facebook. The accused, identified as Juniper Bryson, posted on a Facebook group called “Birth Mothers Looking for Adoptive Parent(s)” in September, stating that she was looking for someone who would be willing to adopt her unborn baby boy, as per the court documents. She is currently being held in the Harris County Jail on a $30,000 bond and has been charged with a felony.
A day prior to posting the message, Bryson had reached out to a family member, asking if they knew someone who was looking to adopt a baby. She hinted during the conversation that the child would be drug-positive, according to a report in ABC 13. During a subsequent conversation, Bryson told the family member that she wanted payment in exchange for the baby.
“It’s not even like that, just enough to move into an apartment so I can work a job and get (my daughter) back, or a cheap down payment, or any car to get to different places to DoorDash. Nothing crazy at all,” Bryson told them.
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Bryson demands money
According to the police, Bryson spoke to several people about adopting her baby, including a same-sex couple and a woman who was with her in the hospital. The same-sex couple even drove overnight from Louisiana with the baby but pulled out when Bryson started demanding money.
According to the prospective parents, Bryson asked them to send her $150 after previously requesting $25 to pay for food delivery.
“If the baby wasn’t worth $200 to them, then screw all,” Bryson reportedly told the couple as they headed back to Louisiana.
Meanwhile, Wendy Williams, who lives in Houston, was in the hospital when Bryson went into labour and stayed with Bryson for the subsequent days.
“I felt a connection as if he were biologically mine.” She said she watched Bryson suffer from withdrawals while in the hospital. “I just thought this was someone who was in a really bad position,” Williams said. “The drugs had overtaken, and she just wanted to get better.”
Court documents reveal that Bryson allowed Williams and her husband to name the baby, with both parties signing legal documents as well. While she was still in the hospital. Bryson posted on Facebook, saying she found a home for the baby and tagged Williams.
However, the netizens who had seen Bryson’s ad, lashed out at Williams for allegedly buying the baby, which left her confused.
“A lot of people started commenting really really ugly things. ‘How dare you sell this baby?’ And then they were tagging me, ‘How dare you buy this baby?'” she said.
When Williams confronted her, Bryson told a nurse to escort Williams out of the room. Williams then notified the Child Protective Service about the incident who arrested Bryson days later.
Notably, in September, a couple from the state of Arkansas was also arrested after they attempted to sell their baby boy for $1,000 and cans of beer. The parents, identified as Darien Urban (21) and Shalene Ehlers (20), signed a letter granting custody of their kid and handed him off to another person.
