Couple With Kids in Car Found Passed Out on I-95

BOYNTON BEACH, FL — A couple traveling with two young children were arrested early Friday after police found them passed out in their Ford Focus on I-95, one of the busiest highways in the country.

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Twenty-five-year-old Tiffany Tapper and 27-year-old Matthew Lee Anderson were each charged with child neglect, according to arrest documents. Tapper was also charged with Driving Under the Influence of alcohol or drugs while Anderson was also charged with a controlled substance violation.

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"While in the car Mr. Anderson and Ms. Tapper were passed out and were not capable to provide their children with the proper care or supervision," according to arrest records reviewed by Patch. "There was no bodily harm to the children. The children both had soiled diapers. There were cockroaches inside the vehicle (within proximity of the children."

The Florida Highway Patrol said the couple was found on the south side of the highway just north of Gateway Boulevard shortly before 9:30 p.m. on Thursday. The initial call came in from Boynton Beach police of a sick or injured person behind the wheel.

A search of the vehicle that had Florida tags turned up a black cloth bag with a white pill bottle that contained three Unisom pills and one white tablet, which was later identified as buprenorphine hydrochloride, according to arrest documents. Police said that they also found a small clear bag of a white powder in Anderson's wallet that was later identified as fentanyl/heroin.

Anderson told police that they were driving to the home of Tapper's parents, according to arrest documents, which said that the children were turned over to a grandparent.

In January, a couple was arrested in Sarasota after police said they passed out at a gas station with two young children in the back seat.

Anderson listed his address as the 6500 block of Rainwood Cove Lane in Lake Worth, Florida while Tapper listed her address as the 7300 block of Ridgefield Drive in Charlotte, North Carolina.

Photo of Tiffany Tapper courtesy of Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office