Teen arrested for meth at home of convicted Cole Co. child abuser

ABC 17 News has confirmed a Cole County teenager is facing charges for having drugs and multiple counts of endangering the welfare of a child in a home daycare outside Jefferson City.

ABC 17 News obtained court documents claiming Abigail Connell’s mother, Shelley Richter, babysits at the same house where meth was found over the weekend. Richter called the Cole County sheriff’s department after discovering a clear plastic baggie on Saturday.

Deputies looked at surveillance video from inside the home Friday morning showing the family dog dropping the baggie on the living room floor, before a 1 year-old picked it up and tossed it behind him, while he played alongside another 1 year-old and 3- year-old child.

In a separate case, Richter was also sentenced to five years in prison last March. She was convicted of child endangerment, after prosecutors accused her of shaking a 7 month-old baby, leaving him brain damaged and blind. ABC 17 News has more coverage of that case here.

The Department of Health and Senior Services states a babysitter or day care provider must be licensed by the state if he or she cares for more than 4 children not related to him/her.

Connell, 18, is charged with four felony counts in Cole County. Connell was in custody as of Tuesday morning.