POTEAU, Okla. — A Poteau woman has been arrested after police say she lied about a boy's cancer diagnosis to solicit donations online for his treatment.
According to Assistant Police Chief Greg Russell, the Poteau Police Department was contacted by a female resident about her wife, Ariana Noelle Gregg, 46, and the six-year-old boy under Gregg's guardianship.
The caller stated that Gregg and the boy left Poteau on Tuesday, May 25, to go to Saint Jude Children's Hospital in Memphis for the boy's cancer treatment.
The caller also stated that she had learned that Gregg and the boy were not at Saint Jude, but that Gregg had made false claims about the boy's cancer, and they were both in Saginaw, Michigan with an online acquaintance of Gregg's.
Poteau Police Department Investigators worked with LeFlore County DHS Child Welfare, the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children and the FBI to locate Gregg and the boy in Fort Wayne, Indiana.
The boy was taken into protective custody by Indiana child welfare authorities, Capt. Russell said.
Police released Gregg in Indiana due to a warrant for her arrest not being issued yet. She was arrested by Poteau officers on Tuesday, June 1, after returning to Oklahoma on an outstanding child abuse warrant.
Additional charges for Gregg are pending.
During the course of the investigation into her actions, police discovered that Gregg had used multiple websites and social media platforms to solicit donations under the guise of funding the boy's cancer treatment expenses.
The Poteau Police Department is urging the public not to donate any further to the associated accounts. They are also asking anyone that did donate to contact them at (918) 647-8620.