PENN YAN, NY — A 43-year-old Syracuse woman was arrested on an outstanding warrant charging her with abandoning a 13-year-old child in 2023.
Ashley A. Montgomery, formerly of Penn Yan, turned herself in to Penn Yan Police after the department issued a wanted poster that was widely broadcast.
Police said they responded to a village residence in September 2023 after a concerned citizen reported a suspicious incident.
Officers found a 13-year-old child living alone after being abandoned by Montgomery for nearly two weeks, according to police.
Police said Montgomery had fled to Syracuse and left the child with two dogs and no resources or money.
The residence was found to be uninhabitable and was subsequently condemned by code enforcement.
The child, who was unharmed, was removed to a safe location with assistance from Child Protective Services.
The two dogs were removed by animal control and re-homed.
Police presented the case to the Yates County District Attorney’s Office, which resulted in a grand jury indictment against Montgomery.
Montgomery faces charges of abandonment of a child, second-degree criminal mischief, fourth-degree criminal mischief, endangering the welfare of a child and abandonment of animals.
Police said Montgomery failed to respond to numerous attempts at contact and could not be located despite assistance from other area law enforcement agencies.
Montgomery was processed at the Penn Yan Police Department and held at the Yates County Jail pending arraignment in Yates County Criminal Court.
