Washington woman arrested after posing as newborn photographer, poisoning mother in alleged plot to steal baby

Authorities in Washington state say a 38-year-old woman and her 16-year-old daughter were arrested after reports that they’d drugged a woman after posing as a newborn baby photographer.

The Pierce County Sheriff’s Department in Washington said detectives arrested the woman and her daughter Friday afternoon after a woman called 911 on Feb. 5 requesting medical help because she believed she’d been drugged.

After receiving treatment, the victim told deputies she’d met the suspect through a post on a newborn baby group on Facebook where the suspect had advertised free photos of newborns so she could build her portfolio. The suspect came to the woman’s house on three occasions and took cellphone selfies with the victim’s baby and wiped her fingerprints off things she touched in the home.

In the final session, the suspect and her daughter gave the victim a cupcake and the victim began feeling numb and drowsy. The sheriff’s office said the victim told the suspect and her daughter to leave her home, but later realized they’d taken her house keys.

The sheriff’s office said it conducted multiple interviews and obtained several search warrants, identifying additional victims along the way.

The investigation also revealed the suspect was planning to steal a newborn baby to raise as her own, the sheriff’s office said.

Deputies arrested the woman on multiple felony charges at her home Friday near Spanaway, Washington, which is about 10 miles south of Tacoma.

The sheriff’s office asked anyone who’s been contacted by a woman named "Juliette Parker," "Juliette Noel" or "Juliette Gains" who posed as a photographer to call their detectives at 253-798-7724.