On the evening of Oct. 17, a few days after Trista Reynolds entered drug rehabilitation, DiPietro, of Waterville, arrived at the Lewiston police station.
At 6:06 p.m., a police officer spoke with DiPietro in the lobby, according to Lt. Mark Cornelio.........
"DiPietro said he was going to ... retrieve his daughter and wanted police to go," Cornelio said. "He explained that he and the mother had an agreement that if she went into treatment, he would take custody."
Cornelio said police called Maine Department of Health and Human Services and confirmed that the state agency had authorized DiPietro to take custody of the daughter.
Next, DiPietro and one police officer went to the Lewiston home of Jessica Reynolds, Ayla's maternal aunt. Becca Hanson, Ayla's maternal grandmother, was there, too.
"Ayla was in my and my daughter's care while Trista was in rehab," Hanson said during a recent phone interview.
Cornelio said Ayla was turned over to DiPietro without incident.