Police say Texas woman tried to buy child for $500K

Texas authorities said a woman was reportedly arrested for allegedly attempting to buy a child for $500,00 at a Walmart in Crockett.

According to a police affidavit obtained by NBC News, Rebecca Lanette Taylor approached a woman who was with her newborn baby and one-year-old son at the self-checkout section of the supermarket on Jan. 13. 

Taylor, 49, then commented on the shopper’s son’s blonde hair and blue eyes and asked her “how much she could purchase him for?” 

The unidentified mom tried to laugh off the inquiry, but Taylor told her she had $250,000 in her car, adding she would pay that amount for him, according to court documents.

“Taylor said that he was the perfect fit and she had been wanting to buy a baby for a long time now,” the affidavit said.

The mom told Taylor no amount of money could convince her to sell away her son, according to NBC News. 

The mother told authorities that Taylor was with another woman, who asked her what the child’s name is, but she did not disclose his name. 

The mother waited for Taylor and the other women to leave the store before heading to her vehicle, but Taylor allegedly met her in the parking lot and began to scream at the mother “saying if she wouldn’t take $250,000 for him, then she would give $500,000 because she wanted him and she was going to take him,” according to the police statement, NBC News reported. 

Once the mother got into her vehicle, Taylor stood behind a vehicle next to her, repeating her demand to pay $500,000 in cash for her son, the statement added. Taylor then got into her Black SUV and left.

Taylor was arrested by authorities last week and charged with sale or purchase of a child, which is a third-degree felony. 

If convicted, Taylor could face between two and 10 years in jail under the state’s penal code and could face a $10,000 fine. 

As of Thursday, records state that Taylor was bonded out of the Houston County Jail, NBC News noted.

The Hill has reached out to the Crockett Police Department for additional information about the case.