By Minyvonne Burke -
NBC News
Jashyah Moore, the 14-year-old New Jersey girl who was found safe in New York City last week after a weeks-long search, allegedly suffered years of abuse at the hands of her mother, according to authorities.
A criminal complaint filed in Essex County court details the charges against Jamie Moore, who is accused of verbally and physically abusing his daughter,
forcing her into prostitution
and refusing to enroll her in school.
The alleged abuses lasted for years, according to the complaint.
Jashyah ran away from his home to flee, authorities said.
"The young woman appears to have gotten sick," said Acting Essex County Prosecutor Theodore Stephens III, "and she didn't want anyone to know where she was. It seemed like ... she was more comfortable where she was."
The teenager was forced to take care of her younger brother Capture via NBC News
The teenager was found last week in New York City
.
He had disappeared on October 14 after visiting a store in East Orange, New Jersey, where his family lives.
Stephens said the teen had passed through locations in New Jersey and New York City, and had stayed in a shelter in Brooklyn before being located.
On the day Jashyah disappeared, he had come home earlier and told his mother that he had lost his EBT electronic benefit transfer card, which many families use to buy food, according to the complaint.
Jamie Moore is accused of
verbally and physically abusing her daughter
for losing her card, according to the complaint.
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The document describes several cases in which the teenager was allegedly hit with objects such as a frying pan.
The mother is also accused of
stabbing Jashyah in the shoulder
, spraying bleach in his eyes and pulling out his braids.
The alleged abuse left Jashyah with
scars and bruises
, according to the complaint.
The teenager was also forced to take care of her 3-year-old brother and had to cook for him or they would not eat, she alleges.
Jashyah was forced to miss days of virtual schooling for this reason and her mother allegedly refused to enroll her in the 2021-22 school year, according to the complaint.
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The complaint also describes how Jashyah
was forced to be on the street and ask for money
.
Her mother, the complaint states, beat her if she came home without a certain amount.
The complaint paints a different picture from what Jamie Moore showed in public.
During the search for Jashyah, Moore wept and prayed for his daughter's safe return.
"I can't imagine what she will be going through just being away from us for so long, being away from her family who love her so much," the mother said during a press conference.
"If anyone knows something, please, please say so," he added.
Back then, Jamie Moore said that when her daughter came home to report that she had lost her EBT card, she told the teenager to retrace her steps.
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The mother was arrested on second-degree charges such as endangering the welfare of a child and "
allegations of physical abuse as well as neglect,
" according to a statement from the Essex County Prosecutor's Office in New Jersey.
It is unclear if Jamie Moore has secured an attorney.
She is being held at the Essex County Correctional Facility.
A detention hearing is scheduled for this Wednesday.
