A 36-year-old Imperial woman was cited for reportedly leaving her two children unattended in an SUV in the parking lot at Walmart, 2201 Michigan Ave. The woman also allegedly lied to police before admitting she left the children alone in the vehicle, Arnold Police reported.
Officers were called to the store at about 9:45 p.m. June 7 when a woman saw two children alone in the SUV. When officers arrived, they saw a 2-year-old boy in a child’s seat in one of the vehicle’s back passenger seats and a 5-year-old girl who appeared to be asleep on a pile of clothes in the back of the vehicle, the report said.
The SUV was locked and the engine was turned off, but the children did not appear to be in distress. An officer remained with the SUV while another officer went into the store to look for the driver, according to the report.
After about 10 minutes, a woman left the store and approached the SUV. She acted surprised to see an officer near her SUV and allegedly told the officer her husband was supposed to be with the children, the report said.
She also said her husband had driven the SUV to the store and she rode in the passenger seat, and then the two argued before she went inside the store. However, officers said numerous items were on the passenger seat, indicating it was unlikely someone had been sitting there on the way to the store. When officers asked the woman how she was able to sit in the passenger’s seat with the items on it, she allegedly confessed she was lying, and told the officers she had left her children in the SUV because they were not behaving, according to the report.
The woman was issued summonses to appear in Arnold Municipal Court for allegedly endangering the welfare of a child and obstructing justice. The case also was referred to the Department of Family Services, Detective Lt. Jason Valentine said.