A 2-year-old Georgia girl was pronounced dead Tuesday after her mother allegedly starved her to death as she danced for cash at a club.
According to a press release, Gwinnett County Police Department responded to a call of a “person down” in Lilburn, located approximately 20 miles outside of Atlanta, when they came upon 2-year-old Reygan Moon. The toddler girl was “unresponsive and cold to the touch.” Authorities subsequently determined the little girl to be dead at the scene.
Reygan’s mother, 29-year-old Devin Moon, told police in an interview that her daughter suffered from a medical condition preventing her from gaining appropriate weight. However, a July 25 autopsy report revealed the official cause of death to be malnutrition due to neglect. No other medical issues were cited.
Reygan weighed 14 pounds at the time of death, with the findings leading to her mother’s arrest. According to babycenter.com, the average weight for a child the same age is between 24.8 to 28.9 pounds, more than double of what the tot weighed in at.
“No other medical issues were discovered which would have led to Reygan’s death,” police said. “Her weight at the time of death was 14 pounds.”
Through the investigation, authorities learned that Moon left the toddler alone “most nights” while she went to work. According to New York Post, police said Thursday that Reygan was left alone “on a regular basis” as she danced for money at local club—for up to 10-12 hours per night. It isn’t yet known where the woman worked or what type of dancing her job entailed.
Moon was previously reported to Georgia’s Division of Family and Children Services (DFCS) by relatives who expressed concern for the child’s well-being. Family members said they hadn’t seen the little girl in about a year.
Moon is facing charges of felony murder and first-degree cruelty to children in the case. She is currently behind bars without bond at Gwinnett County Detention Center.
[Feature Photo: Devin Moon/Gwinnett County Police Department]