Mother Arrested After Non-Verbal Boy Found Alone In OC

HUNTINGTON BEACH, CA — A noncommunicative boy was found alone in Huntington Beach Monday, prompting a call for public help to locate his family before police were able to identify him — and take his mother into custody.

Kimberly Kalafatic, 46, of Huntington Beach, was arrested late Monday morning on suspicion of child endangerment, a short time after police had sought the public's help to identify the boy, Jessica Cuchilla of the Huntington Beach Police Department told City News Service.

After police found the boy alone near Beach Boulevard and Yorktown Avenue, police circulated a photo of the boy, between 10-13 years old, saying his identity was not known and he was "unable to communicate."

By late Monday morning, HBPD reported that "detectives located the child's family and arrested the child's guardian."

"The investigation is ongoing, and the child remains safely in the custody of Orange County Social Services," police said in a statement. "Thank you to everyone who shared the post and called in tips."

This is a developing story. Refresh for details.