LARGO, Fla. — The Florida mom accused of murdering her 2-year-old son is facing a new charge — a felony for lying to police officers. It could tack on another five years to Charisse Stinson's sentence.
Stinson made up an elaborate story, according to Largo Police, telling detectives she and her son accepted a ride from a stranger, then the man named "Antwan" assaulted her and knocked her unconscious then kidnapped her son, Jordan Belliveau.
Stinson later admitted she hit her son "in a moment of frustration" knocking his head into a wall. Then she hid her son's body in a wooded area near the Largo Sports Complex.
Largo Police Officers say the lies not only cost them precious time in finding two-year-old Jordan but cost taxpayers an estimated half a million dollars.
Over the course of more than 87 hours, deputies dove into ponds, combed through trash cans, looked over every inch of Stinson's apartment and called in more than a dozen agencies for backup.
“She was lying the whole time and she had the whole city on a wild goose chase," Largo resident Cassandra Wright said while dropping off stuffed animals and other mementos to a growing memorial for Jordan Belliveau.
Largo Police Officers said 163 sworn law enforcement officers and at least 28 civilian staff members participated in the Amber Alert investigation.
"A very conservative estimate is that salary costs alone for the state and local law enforcement agencies would put the Amber Alert search at between $200,000 to $300,000. That does not include overtime, fuel, purchased and rental equipment, wear and tear on vehicles, food and water and other related expenditures. All things considered, it may very well have cost taxpayers a half million dollars," Largo police spokesperson Randy Chaney explained.
He added that the 15 agencies that helped assist with the Amber Alert were forced to decrease or even cease work on other cases for days as resources were redirected to the search.
"A price cannot be put on that," Chaney added.
