Two Women Arrested in Michigan for Kidnapping 7-Month-Old Boy

Two South Dakota women have been arrested and charged with kidnapping in Michigan days after a seven-month-old boy went missing.

Betty Cross (38) and Taylor Edwards (20), both of Sioux Falls, South Dakota were arrested in Detroit on Wednesday (3/5), each charged with one count of first-degree kidnapping.

Out-of-State Women Suspected of Kidnapping

The case dates back to February 27, when seven-month-old Chosen Butler went missing. According to Sioux Falls Live, the boy was placed in Betty Cross' care and she refused to relinquish custody.

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Police allege that Taylor Edwards acted as an accomplice, helping Cross leave South Dakota with the child.

Additional information from the Argus Leader indicates that child protective services placed the boy in Cross in August 2024. CPS told officers that the agency had made contact with Cross one day before she left the state, informing her that Butler was about to be placed with a different family.

The implication is that Cross left South Dakota in order to avoid having the boy removed from her care.

Arrested in Michigan

Police and CPS officials made several unsuccessfully attempts to contact Cross before issuing an arrest warrant on Tuesday (3/4).

The Minnehaha County (South Dakota) Fugitive Task Force worked to gather information on where Cross may have headed, and then contacted the Detroit Police Department with information about an address where suspected the pair may be.

That hunch turned out to be correct and Detroit police arrested the women on March 5. They'll remain in police custody in Detroit until an extradition hearing can be scheduled.

The child is currently in protective custody in Michigan and appeared to be unharmed.