http://www.wesh.com/news/central-fl...-beach-authorities-say/24804232#ixzz2v8rjjbUW
Daytona Beach Police interviewed the pregnant mother who drove her van with her three children inside into the ocean hours before the incident.
FULL VIDEO: SHERIFF SAYS WIFE SPOKE WITH POLICE BEFORE...
Daytona Beach Police interviewed the mother who drove her van with her three children inside into the ocean hours before the incident.
MORE
Family members told police that 32-year-old Ebony Wilkerson, of South Carolina, was acting strange about two hours before driving the van into the ocean.
"Her sister had called dispatch and told them that she had been talking about demons that day before she left the house," Police Chief Mike Chitwood said Wednesday.
Wilkerson's sister told police she didn't think her sister would harm her children, but that she was "acting odd."
Police pulled Wilkerson over to do a well being check, but Wilkerson did not act in a way that would have allowed law enforcement to take her into custody, and she did not meet Baker Act requirements.
Johnson said Wilkerson was afraid her ex-husband would find and hurt her and the children. Wilkerson told the officers that she was going to her "safe place" that she worked out with a domestic violence shelter.
Raw video: Rescue of family from van in ocean caught on video
Police said Wilkerson would not tell officers or family members the location of her "safe place" because she was worried her husband would find out from them.
Tim Tesseneer, of Rutherfordton, N.C., said he was one of the two men to first reach the minivan.
"The two in the back seat was crying, with their arms out saying 'Our mommy's trying to kill us, please help,'" said Tesseneer.
A bystander's video of the rescue shows a rescuer carrying two children away from the sinking van when the children tell them there was another child inside.
"The kids are like, 'No there's a baby. There's a baby,'" Tesseneer said. "She (the mother) wouldn't say a word. She didn't tell us nothing about a baby."
Full interview: Mom who drove into ocean had awful blank look
The men are seen on video frantically trying to get to the small child through the hatchback and the driver's side door.
Video shows that Wilkerson appears disoriented and walks away from the minivan, with the child still inside.
"She had this look on her face," said Tesseneer. "I can't describe it. It was just an awful blank look, like spaced out look."
The small child is eventually pulled to safety.
Wilkerson is still in the hospital. Deputies said she will have a mental evaluation and they will interview her to determine if she will be charged. Johnson said deputies want to get Wilkerson in the system one way or another to ensure that her children are protected.
Her children, aged 3, 9 and 10, were also taken to the hospital to be examined and are OK, officials said.
The Florida Department of Children and Families currently has custody of the woman's three children. Officials said the children will be placed with family after a background check.
Read more: http://www.wesh.com/news/central-fl...-beach-authorities-say/24804232#ixzz2v8s0w2Eq
WTF
Daytona Beach Police interviewed the pregnant mother who drove her van with her three children inside into the ocean hours before the incident.
FULL VIDEO: SHERIFF SAYS WIFE SPOKE WITH POLICE BEFORE...
Daytona Beach Police interviewed the mother who drove her van with her three children inside into the ocean hours before the incident.
MORE
- 911 CALL: MOM WHO DROVE VAN INTO OCEAN TALKED ABOUT DEMONS
The sister of the mother who drove her van with her three children inside into the ocean called police because she was worried about 32-year-old Ebony Wilkerson.
According to her sister, Wilkerson spoke about demons hours before driving her vehicle into the ocean in Daytona Beach.
MORE
- VIEW LARGERaw video: Rescuers wife captures video
Family members told police that 32-year-old Ebony Wilkerson, of South Carolina, was acting strange about two hours before driving the van into the ocean.
"Her sister had called dispatch and told them that she had been talking about demons that day before she left the house," Police Chief Mike Chitwood said Wednesday.
Wilkerson's sister told police she didn't think her sister would harm her children, but that she was "acting odd."
Police pulled Wilkerson over to do a well being check, but Wilkerson did not act in a way that would have allowed law enforcement to take her into custody, and she did not meet Baker Act requirements.
Johnson said Wilkerson was afraid her ex-husband would find and hurt her and the children. Wilkerson told the officers that she was going to her "safe place" that she worked out with a domestic violence shelter.
Raw video: Rescue of family from van in ocean caught on video
Police said Wilkerson would not tell officers or family members the location of her "safe place" because she was worried her husband would find out from them.
Tim Tesseneer, of Rutherfordton, N.C., said he was one of the two men to first reach the minivan.
"The two in the back seat was crying, with their arms out saying 'Our mommy's trying to kill us, please help,'" said Tesseneer.
A bystander's video of the rescue shows a rescuer carrying two children away from the sinking van when the children tell them there was another child inside.
"The kids are like, 'No there's a baby. There's a baby,'" Tesseneer said. "She (the mother) wouldn't say a word. She didn't tell us nothing about a baby."
Full interview: Mom who drove into ocean had awful blank look
The men are seen on video frantically trying to get to the small child through the hatchback and the driver's side door.
Video shows that Wilkerson appears disoriented and walks away from the minivan, with the child still inside.
"She had this look on her face," said Tesseneer. "I can't describe it. It was just an awful blank look, like spaced out look."
The small child is eventually pulled to safety.
Wilkerson is still in the hospital. Deputies said she will have a mental evaluation and they will interview her to determine if she will be charged. Johnson said deputies want to get Wilkerson in the system one way or another to ensure that her children are protected.
Her children, aged 3, 9 and 10, were also taken to the hospital to be examined and are OK, officials said.
The Florida Department of Children and Families currently has custody of the woman's three children. Officials said the children will be placed with family after a background check.
Read more: http://www.wesh.com/news/central-fl...-beach-authorities-say/24804232#ixzz2v8s0w2Eq
WTF
