In the summer of 2011, 5-month-old Dontrell Melvin went missing, but no one reported it. After a Department of Children and Families investigation in January, the skeletal remains of a child were found in a backyard where the missing boy’s parents used to live in Hallandale Beach.
Days later, the boy’s parents were arrested. Brittney Sierra and Calvin Melvin Jr. both denied any wrongdoing.
"I'm waiting for answers," Sierra said after her arrest.
In January, Sierra and Melvin were charged with child neglect after the two implicated each other – blaming one another. But now, Melvin is only facing charges for lying to police. His child neglect charge has been dropped. Investigators say Sierra is the one to blame. She is charged with child neglect with bodily harm.
After the couple’s arrest, a mutual friend of the couple told NBC 6 about a text message he received from her. Darnell Toney, Dontrell’s godfather, said that Sierra told him that he needed to come get the baby. He asked her what was wrong.
"She said, 'Well, he's always leaving me with this baby and I can't take this no more.’ She said ‘If you don't come get him, I'm going to get rid of him,'" Toney said.
Sierra never talked with NBC 6 about that claim.
NBC 6 visited the families of both Sierra and Melvin, but no one wanted to talk about the amended charges.
Photo Credit: Hallandale Beach Police