It's 'Mommy's Medicine,' Says Missing Pennsylvania Boy Found With Bundles Of Heroin

A Pittsburgh boy who was reported missing last week was discovered at his own house by police, who say they found the child sitting amongst a batch of homemade heroin. 

The mother of the child, Leslie Brown, has since been charged with possession of heroin, as well as intent to manufacture and distribute the drug. She’s also been charged with child endangerment and recklessly endangering another person, according to a criminal complaint obtained by Oxygen.com. 

Brown allegedly phoned police from a Pittsburgh Family Dollar store to report her boy missing on Aug. 23. She claimed her son had been with her in the store and gave police her home address, according to the complaint. Authorities were dispatched there while other detectives remained on-scene at the dollar store. However, upon review of security surveillance footage, investigators said it appeared the boy never came into the shop, and that Brown had entered alone — but when they returned outside to speak with the woman, police said she had vanished. 

Meanwhile, law enforcement had already arrived at Brown’s home, where they discovered her son, only referred to as “Juvenile Doe” in the criminal complaint. Shortly after the boy answered the door, police spotted a cornucopia of heroin baggies. 

“They viewed in plain view a green Crown Royal bag with numerous used stamp bags laying on the couch directly by where Juvenile Doe sits to watch television,” the criminal complaint stated. 

“Also laying there was approximately [two] bundles of heroin marked with a check mark in red ink.”

When authorities asked what the stamp bags contained, the underage boy reportedly replied, “It was mommy’s medicine, she makes it sometimes.”

Brown, who showed up at the residence a short time later, was “relieved” to learn her son was at home. She was arrested and police searched her home and vehicle. 

Police found bundles of heroin on her couch armrest and footrest. Several of the bags police collected were labeled... and inventively named. They found bags marked “Power Trip,” “Panda,” “Road Rage red car,” “Say hello to my little friend,” and  “Playboy,” according to the criminal complaint against Brown. 

They also seized a sandwich bag containing “numerous unused stamp bags marked ‘Rx 360 out of stock’ in red and black ink inside a drawer in the kitchen.” Brown’s 2015 Hyundai Sonata also allegedly yielded packs of the drug.

During the investigation, Brown told police it was her second time making heroin, a craft she had learned “from someone else." She told them she had recently lost her job and had turned to hustling dope as a means of paying her bills, according to the complaint.

Brown also allegedly admitted to using heroin to cope “with some things” and that she made the drug using over-the-counter products. 

After Brown’s arrest, police placed the child in the care of the boy’s grandparents. It’s unclear how old the boy is.

Brown was released on a $25,000 unsecured bond. She was arraigned on Aug. 24 and is scheduled back in court on Sept. 5th, a Pittsburgh Municipal Court clerk told Oxygen.com.