Co-workers, neighbors and friends said they were shocked to learn that 21-year-old Keala Simeona concocted a story that she found an abandoned newborn at Sandy Beach who turned out to be her own child.
Co-workers at Jamba Juice on Ward Avenue said they had no clue she was even pregnant, but knew Simeona was the mother of a 4-year-old son.
“That’s really weird,” said one co-worker who asked not to be named. Simeona would often say, “My son is my world,” the co-worker said, adding, “I didn’t know she was pregnant. I don’t know if anyone did.”
Police arrested and charged Simeona on Tuesday for false reporting, a misdemeanor. She was released the same day on $250 bail.
Detectives determined the woman who reported finding the baby is the baby’s mother, the Honolulu Police Department said in an email Tuesday. Police are not pursuing additional offenses at this time.
Police had said Monday that the woman was not a suspect.
A police spokeswoman did not respond Tuesday to follow-up questions to the email, including whether the woman actually gave birth at Sandy Beach.
She could have availed herself of a 2007 “safe haven” law that allows immunity from prosecution for dropping off an unwanted baby at a hospital, fire station, police station or with emergency personnel if the baby is unharmed and less than 72 hours old, state officials said Monday.
Instead, Simeona brought the infant to the Queen’s Medical Center, along with an unnecessarily fabricated story. She had told police she first heard people screaming at Sandy Beach late Sunday night. Then she claimed she heard a baby’s cry and discovered the infant on the sand, police said.
HPD had opened cases of abandonment and endangerment of a minor Monday.
Health officials said the baby girl appeared to have been abandoned immediately after birth and was born after a 37-week gestation period, which is close to full term (40 weeks).
State Human Services Director Patricia McManaman said Monday that the baby was healthy and uninjured, weighed more than 8 pounds and is being cared for at Queen’s.
Family Court will decide who will take care of the girl. The Department of Human Services’ Child Welfare Services will work with the family to complete its investigation.
“Considering the circumstances of how the child came to CWS’s attention, the DHS also will ask the court to order the alleged mother to submit to DNA testing,” the Human Services Department said in an email.
If someone is identified as the father, DHS will also ask that he submit to a DNA test to confirm his paternity.
“The final decision as to whether the child will be returned to her family or if parental rights will be terminated lies with the Family Court,” DHS said.
A hearing is scheduled for Monday.
McManaman said Monday, prior to the woman being identified as the mother, that the child would be taken into foster custody.
Attempts to reach Simeona at her home Tuesday afternoon were unsuccessful, and family members declined to comment.
A friend who attended Roosevelt High School with Simeona, a 2009 graduate, but did not remain close, said she could tell Simeona was pregnant when she saw her, but was shocked at the news and “disappointed, but we can’t say because we don’t understand her situation.”
Next-door neighbor Bill Young said, “We didn’t know she was pregnant. She didn’t look pregnant. She’s a good kid.”
