Waldo Woman Charged After Children Found Locked in Shed

WALDO ‒ A Waldo woman was arrested early Saturday, June 28, and charged with two counts of child neglect and two counts of false imprisonment after authorities say she left her 5-year-old daughters sleeping in a shed secured from the outside with a brick.

An Alachua County Sheriff’s deputy responded at 2:55 a.m. to a property in the 13600 block of Northeast U.S. Highway 301 after a caller reported finding two young girls inside the shed. The deputy observed that the shed, located roughly 100 feet from the highway, was closed off with a brick propped against the door—posing a risk that the children could have exited and wandered into the unlit roadway.

The children's mother, Tamara Stoiber, 37, was arrested and charged with child neglect for allegedly failing to provide adequate supervision, food, water, lighting or a method of communication. She also faces false imprisonment charges for reportedly confining the children to the shed.

Authorities said the shed had no electricity or running water, and the girls had no access to food or a phone. A large knife was also found within their reach, according to the deputy's report.

The caller told deputies that Stoiber, her boyfriend, and the two girls had arrived at the property unannounced Friday night, soaking wet and claiming they had walked from Gainesville to Waldo. The children were reportedly carrying bags. The caller said she offered them a foot-long sandwich, which Stoiber ate entirely without sharing with the children.

Stoiber allegedly left the property later that night with her boyfriend. The property owner told deputies that he did not give Stoiber permission to leave the children in the shed.

The children’s grandmother, Sabine Thrift, 59, was previously arrested in connection with the case and charged with two counts of child neglect without serious bodily harm. Stoiber had reportedly asked Thrift to watch the children, but Thrift allegedly left them alone after staying with them for about two hours.

The caller later encountered Thrift at the Waldo Train Station. Thrift allegedly said Stoiber had left the children with her while going to the store, but that she "was not going to babysit" and that Stoiber “needed to learn her lesson.”

A text message later obtained by deputies showed Thrift writing to Stoiber: “I am leaving, [they’re] your kids, like to know what store you went.”

Authorities reported that Thrift left the girls for approximately two hours before returning. She was arrested at 5:35 a.m.

According to the report, Stoiber did not return to the shed until 6:42 a.m. She later told deputies she had only been gone for about 30 to 60 minutes and denied placing a brick in front of the shed door. However, both the caller and property owner said they found the brick there when they discovered the children.

Stoiber has no prior criminal history in Alachua County. Her bond was set at $70,000 by Judge Jonathan Ramsey.

Her boyfriend, Matthew Earl Waldo, 47, is listed as a suspect in the case but had not been arrested as of press time.

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