Disturbing surveillance camera footage has exposed the shocking moment a Florida Instacart delivery woman was seen slapping a crying boy in the face as she delivered a package.
Kiah Lowery, 36, was arrested earlier this month after a video went viral that depicted an alleged violent interaction with a child in the hallway of an apartment complex in St Augustine, Florida, according to the St Johns County Sheriff’s Office.
She was charged with child abuse in connection with the May 31 incident. Police said they responded to the apartment complex after an Instacart customer reported the behavior, which was captured on his Ring camera.
Deputies identified Lowery as the woman in the video and the juvenile victim as her six-year-old son, according to an arrest warrant.
The video appears to show Lowery telling the boy to hold a 24-pack of bottled water. The child struggled to carry the 26-pound case of water, grunting and telling his mother, ‘Ow, I can’t hold it.’
Responding officers noted in the arrest warrant that the child only weighed about 49 pounds. The boy’s arms immediately caved, and he dropped the case of water.
The mistake appeared to provoke Lowery, who ran after her child as he retreated and she allegedly grabbed him to slap him in the face. The child was seen crying in pain and holding his face.
‘You’re the worst. The f***ing worst. How dare you! You are a f***ing piece of s**t. Pick this up. You’re gonna carry something!’ Lowery then screamed.
Kiah Lowery, 36, was booked into jail and charged with child abuse after an alarming video appeared to show her slapping her child as she delivered Instacart orders in Florida
A customer’s Ring Camera footage captured the disturbing sequence of events. Police said Lowery ‘struck and scolded’ her six-year-old son
Detectives also noted that elsewhere in the video, Lowery called her six-year-old son a ‘f***ing p***k.’
‘The defendant’s actions, before her reaction of striking the victim’s face, created a severe imbalance for the victim,’ police wrote in an arrest warrant.
‘The victim was clearly unable to hold the water and was struck and scolded by the defendant for an action that he was incapable of performing.’
Lowery told police that her son was being ‘defiant’ while she was fulfilling three orders at the apartment complex.
She apologized for her actions and called the behavior depicted in the video the result of an ‘over-stimulated moment.’
Lowery was booked into the St Johns County Jail, but posted a $5,000 bond. She is prohibited from contacting or seeing her child. Lowery has also been ordered to stay at least 500 feet away from the boy.
She has been given an electronic monitoring system to ensure she does not see the child, according to court documents. Authorities have not released further information about who has custody of the child.
Lowery is set to appear for her felony arraignment at the Seventh Judicial Circuit Court of Florida in front of Judge Christopher Ferebee on July 7.
Police said the child was ordered to carry a 24-pack of bottled water that weighed 26 pounds, noting that he was only about 49 pounds
She has not yet entered a plea for the charges against her and does not appear to have retained an attorney.
Instacart shared a statement with Fox 13 condemning the ‘alarming’ and ‘completely unacceptable behavior’ depicted in the video.
‘We have zero tolerance for violence of any kind, and the shopper has been permanently removed from the platform,’ the statement continued.
‘Instacart maintains strict policies prohibiting shoppers from bringing any individual without a valid shopper account on a delivery, including children.’
The company concluded that they were fully cooperating with law enforcement during the investigation.
