A 39-year-old woman from Oklahoma has been taken into custody regarding the case of her missing daughter, who vanished over two years ago. She is accused of handing over her then-2-year-old child to a man involved in drug sales.
Ashley Rowland was arrested last week and faces charges of child abandonment related to the case of her missing daughter, who authorities indicate has not been seen since 2022, according to Tulsa CBS affiliate KOTV.
A report from Oklahoma City ABC affiliate KOCO reveals that in April 2023, agents from the Oklahoma Department of Human Services were assigned to take custody of a toddler but could not find her. Agents successfully found and contacted Rowland at a home in Moore, Oklahoma, roughly 10 miles south of Oklahoma City.
Upon reaching Rowland, she reportedly stated that the young girl was at her father’s residence in Georgia.
Authorities later confirmed that Rowland had been dishonest about her daughter’s location and reached out to the Moore Police Department. In a later interview with detectives, Rowland reportedly confessed that in April 2022, she handed her daughter over to someone named Carlos. She also mentioned that she thought Carlos might be the girl’s biological father, but she wasn’t certain, according to KOCO.
Image: Ashley Rowland; Moore Police Department
Rowland reportedly claimed that she had not seen the child since handing her over to Carlos, who was involved in selling methamphetamine at that time, according to KOTV. She could not provide investigators with any details about the man, other than her belief that he intended to travel to Mexico and that he lacked identification papers for the child.
Authorities have informed KOTV that the child would now be 5 years old, but they are uncertain about her current whereabouts or her status.
According to KOCO, Oklahoma DHS stated that they cannot provide details about the case, but described the overall situation as “heartbreaking and unimaginable.”
Rowland is now in custody at the Oklahoma County Detention Center with a bond set at $3,000.
