The parents of a 10-year-old Moreno Valley boy in foster care were both charged Tuesday with child stealing for allegedly abducting him as he left school.
Hemet residents Jerry Frazier and Chasity Chainti Phillips, both 42, were arrested Thursday night by Riverside County sheriff’s investigators and were slated to make a joint initial court appearance Tuesday afternoon at the Riverside Hall of Justice.
According to sheriff’s Sgt. Steve Favero, the alleged abduction happened about 3 p.m. last Thursday on the campus of Sunnymead Elementary School in the 24000 block of Dracaea Avenue in Moreno Valley.
Favero said the youngster left the school after classes ended but did not make it to a daycare facility as scheduled. When the boy failed to arrive, his foster care guardians called 911, the sergeant said.
Deputies spoke to witnesses, who described a woman matching Phillips’ description escorting the youth off of campus, Favero said.
Detectives soon determined that Frazier and Phillips, who are the child’s biological parents but do not have custodial rights, took the boy, according to Favero. They were located with their son on Devonshire Avenue in Hemet andd were taken into custody without incident, he said.
The boy was not injured and was returned to his foster home, Favero said.
Frazier has no documented prior felony convictions in Riverside County.
According to court records, Phillips has an unresolved felony case filed in February 2018 that involves robbery and grand theft allegations.
Frazier is being held in lieu of $25,000 bail at the Smith Correctional Facility in Banning and Phillips is being held on $75,000 bail at the Robert Presley Jail in Riverside.
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