Young Mom Reportedly Left Kids Alone in Car To Shoplift Before It Burst Into Flames

Alicia Moore/Facebook

Shoppers at a Florida mall watched in horror as a car went up in flames in the parking lot. At first, they had no idea two children were inside the vehicle. Alicia Moore, 24, was allegedly shoplifting in a Dillard’s store at Oviedo Mall with an unnamed male accomplice and left her two children, 2 and 4 years old, in the car while she was inside.

Bystanders ran to the car and helped rescue the young children, who thankfully survived the devastating fire. Emergency personnel rushed both children to a nearby hospital, where it was determined that one of the children had first-degree burns to the face and arms.

The children were in the car for a long time.

According to NBC News, Moore left the children inside the car in the mall parking lot around noon May 26.

They stayed in the vehicle for about an hour before their mother returned, the Orlando Sentinel reported. Security inside the Dillard’s department store watched Moore and her male companion as they allegedly shoplifted from the store.

According to an arrest report obtained by NBC News, when Moore left the store, she saw her vehicle engulfed in flames, dropped the stolen merchandise, and ran to her children.

Bystanders ran to help.

Shopper Suzanna Matos saw the car on fire, ran to the 2016 Lincoln, and got the children out, the Sentinel reported. Emergency personnel took the children to Arnold Palmer Children’s Hospital in Orlando. The children’s condition is currently unknown, but they are expected to survive.

Police obtained video footage from a Tesla parked next to the torched Lincoln showing the windshield wipers moving after Moore left the vehicle. This led investigators to surmise the car was left on with the children inside, the newspaper reported.

A box marked “flammable gas” was reportedly found in the trunk, but police have not released information about what was inside the box or what caused the fire. Video from the Tesla reportedly shows the fire starting in the rear of the vehicle.

Moore allegedly stole the Lincoln from a friend.

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Florida woman was shoplifting when her car with 2 children inside burst into flames, police say. A Florida woman was shoplifting inside a retail store when she left two children unattended in a vehicle that burst into flames, police said. Alicia Moore, 24, an Orlando resident, is charged with aggravated child neglect and arson. On May 26, Moore parked her car outside a Dillard's department store at the Oviedo Mall and left two children "who could not care for themselves" inside the vehicle, authorities said. She then went into the store and began shoplifting with a man, police said. After about an hour, Moore left the store and found her vehicle engulfed in flames. She dropped the stolen items before leaving the store, the news report said. Witnesses saw the car on fire and rescued the children inside. One child suffered first-degree burns to her face and ears. Authorities are not sure what started the fire.

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Moore reportedly refused to return the car to a friend who let her borrow it, the Sentinel reported. After allegedly stealing the vehicle, Moore was involved in a court case accusing her of fleeing an officer in March, and it is said she escaped in the Lincoln. Although the vehicle was totaled in the fire, police determined it was the exact vehicle involved in the prior incident.

The mother is reportedly no stranger to law enforcement. Moore allegedly had previous theft charges, according to the Sentinel. Her first grand theft charge came in 2017 when she allegedly stole $1,000 from Target, and the next was for reportedly stealing $1,500 in gift cards from her then employer, Seven-11.

At one time, Moore created a GoFundMe account to help with bills.

In 2017, Moore posted a link to her Facebook page requesting donations to help her get on her feet.

“I am homeless, pregnant and alone . I am trying to get an apartment but don’t even have the money to eat day to day. I steal my prenantals and the things I need for my pregnancy. And I sleep behind store buildings so no one will see me and try to hurt me in any way,” her GoFundMe post reads.

“I have applied for shelters but they all are either full or have a waiting list. I am trying to enroll into college but cannot without a stable address and healthy hygiene. Please help me I am at my last resorts . I do not do drugs and do not drink alcohol and are willing to take tests to prove it,” her GoFundMe post continued. “Just trusted the wrong people in life. Now I’m fighting trying to save my life and my child’s life too.”

The GoFundMe account raised $2.

The mother faces multiple charges.

Moore sits in the Seminole County Jail on aggravated child neglect and first-degree arson charges. The child neglect charge carries a maximum sentence of 15 years, and the arson charge has a maximum of 30 years.

The Sentinel reported Moore also faces four charges out of Sumter County, including petty theft and assault and battery on a person 65 or older. She is due in court for arraignment on June 27.

The mother pleaded not guilty to the latest charges, according to NBC News.