WEST VALLEY CITY — A 30-year-old West Valley man who police say left his 3-year-old and 6-month-old children home alone while he went out to get food was arrested over the weekend.
The man was booked into the Salt Lake County Jail Sunday night for investigation of two counts of child abandonment.
Police were called to the area of 3500 West and 3200 South on Sunday, on a report that a 3-year-old girl was found in the road, according to a police booking affidavit. The person who found the child talked to a neighbor who recognized the girl and pointed out where she lived.
The citizen, who eventually called the police, "went to the address and found the door open. The caller was unable to get anyone to come outside, so they checked the house and found an infant child sleeping in a bedroom in the back of the house and no adult was in the home," the affidavit states.
When officers arrived, they also did not find an adult in the house. The father came home while police were at the scene.
"(He) said he had left the children alone to go pick up takeout. (He) said he told his daughter, who is 3 years old, to stay home and not let anyone in. (He) said his infant son, who is 6 months old, was sleeping on the bed," according to the affidavit.
The man told police he left the house at 9 p.m. Police noted that they received a 911 call about the girl at 9:30 p.m.
