7-year-old reported missing by mom was kidnapped by neighbors at TX apartment, cops say

A 7-year-old child was kidnapped and sexually assaulted by a man and woman in a neighboring apartment, Texas police say.

Officers responded to a kidnapping abduction call at an apartment complex on the southeast side of Austin at 1:38 p.m. Friday, March 14, the Austin Police Department said in a news release.

When officers arrived, they spoke to the child’s mother, who said the child went missing from their apartment, according to police.

She went to run an errand, the mother said, but when she returned, her kid was gone, according to court records obtained by KXAN. Several sodas were also missing, which led her to believe someone else may have been with her child before she disappeared.

Police said they soon discovered the child hadn’t been taken far.

As police talked to the mom, “spectators” gathered and told officers that “the child was in another apartment,” police said.

A resident said they could hear the child “screaming inside one of the apartments,” according to police, KXAN reported.

Officers went to investigate the apartment and arrested Jeffrey Caneen and Taylor Brasher. Both are charged with first-degree aggravated kidnapping, police said.

Records show Brasher is also accused of sexual abuse in connection to the kidnapping.

Brasher told investigators she encountered the child in the breezeway and asked them to take her to their apartment, at which point Brasher started stealing food and toiletries, KXAN reported. When the child tried to stop her, Brasher hit them, then took the child with her to the unit where she and Caneen assaulted them, she told police, the outlet reported.

An investigation is ongoing, police said.

McClatchy News reached out to an attorney representing Brasher for comment but didn’t immediately hear back.

No attorney information was available for Caneen.

This story was originally published March 20, 2025 at 2:19 PM with the headline "7-year-old reported missing by mom was kidnapped by neighbors at TX apartment, cops say."