Lakeville Mother Pleads Guilty To Theft In Child Neglect Case
MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) – One of two Lakeville parents charged after going missing with their children last October pleaded guilty to theft in connection with the case.
Angela Robinson, 33, pleaded guilty to felony theft by temporary control. She is also charged with child neglect, as is 38-year-old Zacharia Wilson. The two allegedly went missing last October with their children and drove around for several days before they were found in a car behind a grocery store in unsanitary conditions.
The couple's two children, ages 4 and 7, both lived at Robison's mother's home in Lakeville. The couple is accused of taking Robinson's mother's car with the intention of dropping off at a friend's place, but the two left with the children and went missing for days.
According to court documents, Robinson is a former heroin and pill user. Wilson had also been on probation for terroristic threats and was in violation of his probation for not contacting his agent.
Five days after they disappeared, a driver making an early-morning delivery to a Minneapolis grocery store saw their vehicle parked by a loading dock. The couple was standing outside and when the worker confronted them, they said they were "doing surveillance." A child then jumped into the backseat, and Wilson allegedly hit the child.
Police arrived to the scene, and a search of the vehicle revealed a syringe in the center console. Authorities said the family members had an odor that indicated they hadn't bathed in days. One of the kids told a social worker that they were driving around for days, hadn't bathed or brushed their teeth and went without breakfast, lunch or dinner some days.
Robinson pleaded guilty to theft by temporary control on Dec. 22. She has a stay of imposition with 120 days to serve. Wilson is scheduled to go on trial on Feb. 6.
