by Sarah Kuta
Last updated: 10:50 AM ET, Wed September 30, 2026
A Florida mother was arrested after police said she left her four young children, including a 2-month-old infant and a 2-year-old, home alone while she took a three-day cruise to the Bahamas.
Nathalie Belizaire, 29, of North Miami Beach, faces four counts of child neglect without great bodily harm, according to North Miami Beach police.
Police became involved on September 26 after the father of Belizaire’s 2-month-old child became concerned about the children. He told investigators that he had seen a post on Belizaire’s WhatsApp story two days earlier that appeared to show a cruise ticket.
Belizaire allegedly told him that she planned to leave the children with their great-grandmother while she went out of town. But when he went to Belizaire’s apartment, he saw that the television was on and heard the children inside, according to an arrest report. He then called 911.
Police and Miami-Dade Fire Rescue responded and forced their way into the apartment. They found all four children inside without adult supervision, police said. The children were hiding together in a bathroom.
The children’s great-grandmother told investigators that Belizaire had said she would drop the children off before leaving town but never brought them to her home. Belizaire’s brother also told police that she had texted him around 8 p.m. September 26 asking him to check on the children.
Police said they were unable to reach Belizaire. Investigators later determined that Belizaire had purchased a three-day trip to the Bahamas aboard Carnival Cruise Line’s Carnival Conquest, which departed September 25.
When the ship returned to PortMiami on September 28, authorities were waiting. U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers took Belizaire into custody as she disembarked and turned her over to North Miami Beach police. Belizaire declined to provide a statement to investigators and invoked her right to remain silent, according to police.
She appeared in bond court on September 29, where a judge set her bond at $10,000 and ordered her to stay away from the children. The children were placed in foster care and were reported to be safe.
“You cannot make this up,” Mindy Glazer, the judge in the case, said during the hearing, as reported by NBC Miami. “It says she went on a cruise and left her children home alone. These poor kids, four of them, were home alone for three days … I'm just grateful nothing worse happened to these kids.”
Belizaire's attorney said she denies the allegations. She posted bond and was released.
For the latest travel news, updates and deals, subscribe to the daily TravelPulse newsletter.
Topics From This Article to Explore
