A 20-year-old North Carolina mother has been arrested after she was seen in a viral Facebook video forcing her 1-year-old child to inhale marijuana.
Brianna Ashanti Lofton was arrested on Wednesday and charged with two counts of felony child abuse, contributing to delinquency and possession of marijuana.
In the sick viral video, an adult hand can be seen holding what appears to be a joint to the child’s lips. The toddler appears to inhale and then exhales a puff of smoke.
Raleigh Police became aware of the video after a man in Rochester, New York, posted the video online, after which authorities in Noth Carolina were able to trace the mother’s identity and arrest her.
The Raleigh Police Department said Wednesday that the child was safe and she was in custody. In the statement, the police department thanked residents and others who began posting the video and related information after 9:30 a.m. Wednesday.
"Big thanks to everyone who posted information about the smoking mother and baby. Thanks to your willingness to get involved, the child is now safe and the mother is in police custody," the department wrote in a Facebook post.
"Big thanks to everyone who posted information about the smoking mother and baby. Thanks to your willingness to get involved, the child is now safe and the mother is in police custody," the department wrote in a Facebook post.
The child was placed in the care of Wake County Child Protective Services while her mother is being held on a $100,000 bond. Lofton has been arrested four previous times, all last summer, on various misdemeanors including simple assault.
Watch the viral video below.
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