Mother Called Lyft To Drive Her To Dumpster Where She Discarded Son's Body

Authorities in Baltimore say that a mother called a Lyft to drive her across the city so she could discard the remains of her dead four-year-old son in a Dumpster. 25-year-old Alicia Lawson reported her son, Malachi Lawson, missing on August 1. She claimed he vanished off her front steps when she stepped back inside her home.

The FBI was called and missing child alerts were sent out as authorities desperately searched for the young boy. Two days later, the search came to an abrupt halt when Lawson admitted that her son was dead. She told officers that she wrapped his body in a blanket and called a Lyft to take her to the other side of the city where she put her son's remains in a trash bag and dropped him into a Dumpster.

Lawson and her partner, Shatika Lawson, explained to the police that they were bathing Malachi because he had soiled his pants. While he was in the tub, the two women began washing his clothes in the sink. When they went to check on him, they noticed he had suffered severe burns from his waist to his feet while sitting in the hot water.

Instead of calling 911 or taking the Malachi to the hospital, they decided to treat the burns themselves because they were concerned they might lose custody of the boy.

"They could see skin from his body floating in the water after they pulled him from the bathtub. They decided not to call 911 or seek any type of medical assistance because they feared the child would be taken from them or they would get into trouble for what had happened to the child because of their past history with Child Protective Services," authorities wrote in charging documents.

Both women were arrested and charged with involuntary manslaughter, child abuse resulting in death and neglect of a minor. A judge ruled they were a flight risk and ordered them held without bond.

Photo: Baltimore Police Department