COLERAIN TOWNSHIP, Ohio (WJW) – A woman accused of leaving her 5-year-old son with autism by an Ohio road explained why she did it, reports say.

Colerain Township police say Heather Adkins is being held on a warrant in connection with the incident, but also a warrant in Georgetown, Kentucky, where she is currently at Scott County Detention Center.

According to reports from WKRC, Adkins told a WKYT reporter from jail that she left her son on the side of the road “to save him” from her.

The 5-year-old was reportedly found near Sheed Road and Gaines Road in Colerain Township after being abandoned in the area about an hour earlier, police said. Passing drivers reportedly found the boy.

Police said the child, who has autism and is described as non-verbal, reportedly lives in Shelbyville, Indiana, where his mother also lives.

According to WKRC, Adkins left her two other children with her best friend, telling her at the time that the 5-year-old was with his father. WKRC reports that the child’s father, Kevin Adkins, is actually in the Shelby County Jail in Indiana.

Adkins was booked around 8 p.m. Saturday and has a court date scheduled for Tuesday, according to county jail records.

The Colerain Township Police Department also said they are working to bring the suspect back to Ohio to face their charges.