VERO BEACH, Fla. — A Vero Beach mother has been arrested and two young children have been removed from her custody following a child sexual abuse investigation that authorities say stretched from Florida to Michigan.

According to the Indian River County Sheriff's Office, detectives with the agency's Internet Crimes Against Children unit were contacted by Michigan State Police regarding an ongoing ICAC investigation.

Investigators said images and videos found on a Kik account showed a woman sexually abusing two young children. Detectives identified the woman as 28-year-old Lisette Zamarripa of Vero Beach and responded to her home.

Authorities said detectives located and safely removed two children, a 1-year-old girl and a 2-year-old boy, both identified by investigators as Zamarripa's biological children. The Florida Department of Children and Families took custody of the children.

According to the Sheriff's Office, Zamarripa admitted to investigators that she sexually abused the children and recorded the abuse during a video call at the request of her boyfriend, Kenneth Conkle, who was watching from Michigan.

Authorities said Zamarripa was located and arrested roughly two and a half hours after Indian River County detectives received the initial information. The Sheriff's Office said she was charged with two counts of sexual battery and transmission of child sexual abuse material.

MICHIGAN INVESTIGATION

The investigation also moved forward in Michigan.

According to the Indian River County Sheriff's Office, investigators with the Van Buren County Sheriff's Office served a search warrant at Conkle's home. Authorities said Conkle admitted to directing and recording the abuse involving the Vero Beach children.

Investigators also said Conkle admitted to separately abusing his own 1-year-old daughter.

The Sheriff's Office said Conkle faces Michigan charges including child sexual battery, four counts of production of aggravated child sexual abuse material and five counts of using a computer to commit a crime. Florida charges against Conkle were pending at the time of the Sheriff's Office announcement.

CHILDREN REMOVED TO SAFETY

The Indian River County Sheriff's Office praised its detectives for acting quickly and Michigan investigators for their cooperation across state lines.

Protecting children is always the top priority of the Indian River County Sheriff's Office," the agency said in its announcement. "This kind of abuse is absolutely unacceptable and will never be tolerated in our county.

The agency said it was proud of detectives for quickly removing the children from what it described as a dangerous situation and thanked Michigan investigators for their partnership.

CONTENT WARNING

This report involves allegations of child sexual abuse. IRC Media has intentionally omitted unnecessary graphic details involving the children.

EDITOR'S NOTE

According to law enforcement, both Lisette Zamarripa and Kenneth Conkle made admissions to investigators regarding the alleged abuse described in this report. Criminal charges remain pending, and both defendants are presumed innocent under the law unless and until proven guilty in court.

IRC Media uses aggregated public data and verified sources; articles reviewed by editorial team to the best of our ability.