MIDLAND, Texas (KMID/KPEJ)- On Monday, the Midland Police Department announced it had identified a young man with special needs found wandering alone earlier this year, and had arrested his mother, 47-year-old Charlotte Latasha Pegues; she’s been charged with Exploitation of a Disabled Person. Now, an affidavit has revealed new details about the arrest. 

According to court documents, on August 9, Cordarius’ grandmother called the department and identified the young man at the center of a months long mystery as 24-year-old Cordarius Lashun Pegues. She said Cordarius had been living with his mother, Charlotte, in Midland.

Detectives then visited the home and learned that Charlotte had still been collecting a $500 state support check, issued to help care for Cordarius, despite no longer having Cordarius in her custody. Investigators said Charlotte’s home was “hazardous and unhygienic” and that there were no items in the home for Cordarius: no clothing, no toys, no signs that he’d been living there, except for unopened packages sent by his grandmother in February of 2021.

Charlotte was arrested and booked into the Midland County Detention Center where she remained as of Tuesday morning.

On January 29, officers found the young man unattended near Ward Street and Shandon Avenue. While he wasn’t able speak, he did know how to write his name. The mystery sparked a nationwide hunt for his family and MPD collected DNA in hopes of identifying him and reuniting him with loved ones. Earlier this month, MPD said that the DNA test did not yield any results and that Cordarius was happy and healthy living with his foster family.