CHARLESTON, SC NEWS - LIVE 5 WCSC Breaking News, Weather, SportsMother cleared in Thursday's abduction; case stemmed from custody dispute

Mother cleared in Thursday's abduction; case stemmed from custody dispute

By Hatzel Vela  bio | email | Twitter

RALEIGH, NC (WECT/WCSC) – Fort Bragg Police cancelled an Amber Alert issued for a five-year-old girl Thursday afternoon, some eight hours after it was issued.

Police cleared Alexis Gerald, the girl's mother, who initially was thought to have abducted Te'Amani Gerald from her father's house on Lapoterie Street in Fort Bragg, NC.

Gerald said she was only looking out for her child's best interest.

Wednesday night, she drove to North Carolina with the intention of bringing her daughter back to North Charleston, because she learned her daughter's father was legally seeking a way to have temporary custody of the child.

"He never said anything about that," said Gerald.  "When I called, he never said that's what he was thinking about doing."

The couple had agreed Te'Amani could spend the school year in North Carolina and come home during breaks and holidays, said Gerald, who held a copy of the hand-written signed agreement.

Gerald picked up her daughter before she could leave for school Thursday morning.

"She looked right at my face when I was driving by. I looked right at her when I was driving by in my truck," Gerald said of the girl's stepmother.

But Alphonso Green, Te'Amani's father, disagreed.

In a phone interview, he admited he wasn't there when Gerald took her daughter, but he said his wife did not see who took Te'Amani.

Gerald said it was her family who told her police was looking for her. She contacted North Carolina officials and then agreed to voluntarily drive to North Charleston City Hall and meet with officials to show she was Te'Amani's mother.

Gerald wasn't charged with anything, but said she feels betrayed by her daughter's father.

Copyright 2010 WECT and WCSC. All rights reserved.