COLUMBIA, MO — A Columbia woman was charged Monday with abuse or neglect of a child after her 9-month-old son was reported missing over the weekend and a public safety alert was issued. Police said the child was later returned to the home safe and unharmed by someone known to him.

Lillian Kristine Scruggs, 32, was arrested in connection with the incident, according to the Columbia Police Department. Investigators said the case began Saturday after the baby disappeared from the family’s home, triggering concern for his safety and a wider response from law enforcement.

Police have not said the child was injured. The charge came after officers reviewed statements and witness accounts describing what happened inside the residence before the boy was found again.

How police say the child disappeared from the home

According to a probable cause statement, Scruggs told investigators she had been talking on the phone while her son played on the living room floor. She said that when she looked back, the baby was gone.

The account placed the focus on a brief period in which the child was reportedly left in the living room while his mother was distracted. Police said the missing-child alert followed soon after the disappearance was discovered.

The exact sequence of events inside the home became central to the case because officers were trying to determine whether the child had been left alone or whether someone else had taken him. Police ultimately said the boy was brought back by a person familiar to him.

Officers described signs of intoxication when they arrived

When police responded, the probable cause statement says Scruggs appeared to be under the influence. Officers said she had trouble walking in a straight line, focusing, or keeping her head up.

That detail became important because investigators were trying to understand the circumstances surrounding the child’s disappearance and whether the home environment placed him at risk. The statement ties the alleged impairment to the officers’ observations at the scene.

Police have not publicly said what substance, if any, may have been involved. The charge in this case centers on child abuse or neglect, not a separate drug allegation.

Witnesses told investigators the baby had been left unattended

Witnesses interviewed by law enforcement gave a different picture of what was happening in the home. According to the probable cause statement, one witness said Scruggs was passed out in the bathroom and did not know her son was no longer there.

Another witness told investigators they heard the baby crying inside the house and saw him lying on the floor unattended. That person said they removed the child from the residence because they believed no one else was home.

Those accounts are significant because they suggest the child may have been left without supervision before he was discovered missing. Police have not said which witness statements, if any, were independently confirmed beyond the initial investigation.

The child was returned unharmed after the alert

Despite the alarm raised over the weekend, police said the boy was returned to the home safe and unharmed. The child was reportedly brought back by a person who was known to him, which helped bring the case to an end without a longer search.

The Columbia Police Department did not release details about how long the baby was missing or how the alert was handled beyond saying a public safety message was issued. What is clear is that officers treated the disappearance as serious enough to prompt an immediate response.

For families, missing-child alerts are designed to quickly spread information when a young child is believed to be in danger. In this case, the warning was resolved once the baby was back home and investigators began focusing on the events that led to his disappearance.

What happens next in the case against Scruggs

Scruggs now faces a child abuse or neglect charge as police continue to rely on the probable cause statement and witness accounts. Court proceedings will determine how prosecutors move forward and what evidence is presented to support the allegation.

The arrest means the case shifts from an emergency missing-child response to a criminal matter centered on the conditions in the home and the supervision of the infant. Police have not announced any additional charges in connection with the weekend incident.

For now, the central facts remain the same: the baby was reported missing, a public alert went out, and officers later said the child was safely back in the residence while Scruggs faced a charge tied to how the situation unfolded.