DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. — Deputies say a Georgia family’s vacation ended with two adults arrested and two children wandering Daytona Beach.
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The Volusia County Sheriff’s Office said deputies responded Saturday to Daytona Beach after receiving an anonymous call about two adults who were possibly passed out after drinking alcohol.
The caller described the couple and two children who were with them.
Deputy body-worn footage released by VCSO appeared to show the couple sleeping, surrounded by open cans of alcohol, open beach chairs and toys, but no children in sight.
In the video, deputies are seen and heard repeatedly trying to wake the couple up.
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According to an arrest report, when deputies asked Timothy Stephens where the children were, he gestured toward the ocean. Moments later, Stephens walked off to find the kids and looked toward the surf but did not see them there, investigators said.
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Deputies said they then escorted Stephens toward the nearby Nautilus Inn, where they found both children, ages 5 and 7, swimming in the pool, unsupervised.
Deputies determined the children appeared to be unharmed and healthy.
Deputies arrested Stephens on charges of child neglect and possession of alcohol on the beach.
After being cuffed and standing near a patrol vehicle, the body-worn video also showed Stephens allegedly trying to run from deputies and then falling. The arrest affidavit stated that Stephens became unconscious after he fell on the hard sand.
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He was taken to the hospital to be checked out and later booked into jail.
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The children’s mother, who is also Stephen’s fiancée, was arrested for child neglect, according to the written report.
Deputies said a family member from Georgia then traveled to Volusia County to take custody of and care for the two children.
Both adults have since bonded out of the Volusia County jail.
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