Mother abandoned her child on busy highway, reported him kidnapped, sheriff says

EUNICE, La. (KPLC/Gray News) - A woman in Louisiana is facing several charges after allegedly leaving her son on the side of the road in the middle of the night and reporting him as kidnapped.

Around 1 a.m. on Nov. 5, 24-year-old Artasia Viges called 911 and told authorities that someone kidnapped her son in an older model truck as she was fixing a flat tire on the side of the highway.

When deputies arrived, they learned the child was found in the parking lot of a clinic with abrasions to his knees.

The child told deputies that his mother “ran him over” and left him on the side of the road.

He was taken to the hospital for treatment and authorities were called in to investigate the situation more.

Through the investigation, it was determined that there was a disagreement between Viges and her son escalated into him throwing a tantrum.

As she was pulling over, the child bailed out of the car before it came to a stop, which injured the boy’s knees.

Viges allegedly chose to leave the child out of the car and allowed him to run off into the dark along the highway, according to the sheriff’s office.

Viges admitted to detectives that she did not attempt to go after him and ultimately lost sight of him, deputies said.

She was charged with cruelty to juveniles, child desertion, and false swearing for the purpose of violating public health of safety.

Her bond is set at $200,000.