AMBER Alert Ends With Child Safe in Elsberry, Mother Charged With False Report
- John Eads
- Aug 12
- 3 min read
ST. LOUIS, Mo. — A St. Louis woman is facing charges after police determined a child reported to be inside a stolen vehicle during an AMBER Alert was actually safe in Elsberry and had never been inside the vehicle.
Brianna Nichole Mathis, 25, is charged with knowingly making a false report that triggers an AMBER Alert, a Class A misdemeanor, and making a false report, a Class B misdemeanor.
The incident began Aug. 9 at a gas station at 902 S. Broadway in St. Louis, where Mathis reported that a man she knew as JoJo had driven away in a blue Dodge Charger with her 1-year-old child inside.
The man was identified as Joseph Nickell, and an AMBER Alert was issued at 11:35 p.m. as authorities worked to locate the vehicle and child.
Nickell later contacted police and said the child had never been inside the vehicle. Police also determined the Dodge Charger belonged to Nickell.
Attention then turned to locating and confirming the welfare of the child.
That led investigators to Elsberry, where the child was already staying at a separate residence.
Captain Matt Keating with the Elsberry Police Department told Lincoln CountyWatch that his department was not involved in the original incident or the investigation surrounding the vehicle. Elsberry officers were asked to confirm the child was at the residence and safe.
Keating said the child was in protective custody, was not in Mathis’ care at the time and had never been inside the vehicle involved in the St. Louis incident.
Elsberry officers completed a welfare check and confirmed the child was in good health.
The Missouri State Highway Patrol canceled the AMBER Alert at 2:42 a.m. Aug. 10 after the child was located safely.
Mathis was charged later Aug. 10.
No charges against Nickell related to the incident were found in the court records reviewed by Lincoln CountyWatch.
Mathis was initially ordered held without bond and was released Aug. 11 under pretrial supervision. Her next court appearance is scheduled for Sept. 10 at 9 a.m. in St. Louis.
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Story by: John Eads
Primary Sources
St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department probable cause statement
St. Louis City court records
Missouri Case.net
Missouri State Highway Patrol AMBER Alert
Missouri State Highway Patrol AMBER Alert cancellation
Interview with Elsberry Police Department Captain Matt Keating
Elsberry Police Department
Lincoln CountyWatch reporting
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