The now-viral video of an African American girl in Costco with her white adoptive family continues to make headlines. And upon doing some research, I’ve found some additional information.

According to NBC Palm Springs, Angelica Mendez, a shopper at Costco in Palm Desert, California, witnessed alleged abuse towards a young black girl. She stated that the girl looked scared and wasn’t eating with the rest of her family.

Mendez started recording and gave the following recount of the story:

“I seen the little girl ask, the adopted child ask if she can take a bite of a hot dog, the father said, you don’t speak and you don’t ask any questions, your sick and you are not allowed to eat.”

“I start asking her more questions, I’m like are you okay, are you okay baby, are you hungry? and she tells me, she shakes her head no, but starts crying more, I ask her three times, she says the same answer which is no, the fourth time she says yes. she says yes she looks up, she looks back down so quick, and the father kicked her under the table, she starts to cry even more. He tells the family lets get up and let’s get going.”

As the family started leaving, Mendez called the police. The next day, the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department advised that they located the family, did an investigation, and told her that the young girl is in a safe family.

The Gilbert Police Department in Arizona, who was also notified, made the following statement on their Twitter account.

On August 22nd, 2021, Gilbert Police conducted a welfare check requested by the Riverside County Sheriff’s Office in California after they were made aware of a video recording at a Costco where an individual alleged that a family was withholding food from one of their children.

Gilbert officers contacted the family and found the child to be safe and in good health. Through their investigation and subsequent interviews, it was found that the child had refused to eat the day of the video recording due to an upset stomach.

The Arizona Department of Child Safety conducted its own separate investigation into the incident. No evidence of any crime has been established.

Many are not buying it and are requesting further investigation and proof that the girl is ok. Social Media users are using the hashtag #CostcoGirl to continue to spread this story.

The contact number to Child Protective Service in Riverside County, California, is 1-800-442-4918. And the Arizona Child Abuse Hotline is 1-888-767-2445.

I will keep you all updated on any new information.

Until Next Time…

(Sources)

Photo Credit: Twitter

Payne, N. (2021, August 23). SHERIFFS RESPOND TO ONLINE VIDEO OF ALLEGED CHILD ABUSE; SAY IT’S NOT CREDIBLE. NBC Palm Springs. https://nbcpalmsprings.com/2021/08/23/sheriffs-respond-to-online-video-of-alleged-child-abuse-say-its-not-credible/.