The remains of Taylor Rose Williams, the 5-year-old Florida girl who was reported missing earlier this month, were positively identified Monday, according to T.K. Waters, chief of investigations with the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office.
Taylor was reported missing by her mother November 6. Human remains were then found in Demopolis, Alabama, two weeks ago and a DNA analysis Monday showed they belonged to Taylor.
Taylor’s cause of death is still under investigation, Waters said. The Amber Alert that was initially called for Taylor by the Florida Department of Law Enforcement was canceled.
Hours after the 5-year-old girl’s body was found in Alabama, her mother, Brianna Shontae Williams, was arrested and charged with child neglect and giving false information to investigators.
Authorities said Taylor’s mother was not cooperating with authorities.
Williams was charged while being treated at a Florida hospital for an apparent overdose, Jacksonville Sheriff Mike Williams said. She was in serious condition.
An affidavit said Williams — who worked at the Naval Air Station in Jacksonville — made false statements to investigators, including that she drove to Tuscaloosa, Alabama, in late October to pick up Taylor from the girl’s grandparents’ house. But Taylor’s grandparents told authorities they had not seen the girl in more than a year.
Williams, 27, also made false statements about her daughter’s day care, the affidavit said. Taylor had not attended day care since April, according to the affidavit.