By 3 News online staff
The woman accused of kidnapping toddler Alyssa Barker faces extra charges.
Skye Mason appeared in the Waitakere District Court this afternoon charged with abducting a person under the age of 16, assaulting police and failing to provide identification or particulars.
The 27-year-old was remanded in custody until tomorrow morning.
Mason is alleged to have snatched 17-month-old Alyssa from home and kept her for 36 hours.
Her lawyer, Jo Wickliffe, said her client is clearly “not well” and “there needs to be some further assessment of her”.
Judge Claire Ryan agreed, denying media applications for camera in court photographs and video of the accused due to her “fragile state”.
She said Mason’s mental health outweighed the interests of open justice in this instance.
Alyssa’s disappearance around 3pm Friday sparked a frantic search by police that saw an information blitz from Auckland to Wellington.
A good Samaritan woman who watched the 6pm television news recognised the woman and child who were staying with her as Skye Mason, 27, and Alyssa.
She then waited until they were asleep before calling police at 9:15pm.
Alyssa's father Scott told the Weekend Herald Alyssa was very happy to see him and her mum Sam.
"She gave us lots of cuddles and smiles."
Police who picked up Alyssa said she was well and did not seem to be suffering any ill-effects as a result of her absence from her home near Kaukapakapa, north of the city. She had a brief check-up in Waitakere Hospital and was given the all-clear.
Mason had initially been taken in by Alyssa’s family after they took pity on her for sleeping rough in the neighbourhood.
3 News