Durban - Two sets of parents, who left their young children unattended in parked vehicles while shopping at Pietermaritzburg malls, look set to avoid justice.
In the most recent case, on Wednesday, a couple, whose names are known to the Daily News, allegedly left their three-month-old baby alone and strapped in his car seat while they went shopping at Cascades Centre.
According to a car guard at the centre who identified himself as “Mike”, one of his colleagues heard a baby crying while patrolling the parking lot.
He was horrified to discover that a tiny infant had been left alone in a locked VW Polo.
“My colleague tried to pacify the child through the closed window, but the baby still cried and looked very agitated. He stood at the car window for 15 minutes, hoping the parents would come back to check on the baby, but they never did,” Mike said.
He said his colleague then asked him to stand at the window while he went inside the centre to look for the parents.
The car guard informed centre management and an announcement was made over the mall public address system.
According to reports by witnesses, taken by police, once the announcement was made, a man was seen rushing to the car.
The baby was taken to hospital by ambulance for medical observation, accompanied by his father.
Police sources indicated the baby had been kept in the care of social services on Wednesday night, but the Daily News has established the child was returned to his parents on Thursday.
Police spokesman, Constable Mthokozisi Ngobese, said he believed the parents would be charged with child negligence in terms of the Children’s Act, however, when the Daily News made inquiries at the Pietermaritzburg Magistrate’s Court on Thursday, it confirmed no charges had been enrolled against the parents, and it seemed unlikely any charges would be laid in the future.
A source at court said there were no provisions for charges of this nature, and that further enquiries and investigations would have to be undertaken before anything could be done.
Wednesday’s incident follows a similar one at the Midlands Liberty Mall last week, when mall security discovered two toddlers, aged two and four, locked in an unattended car with the windows up.
Police had to break the vehicle’s windows to free the children.
Paramedics treated the two boys for mild heat exhaustion.
Their parents have also not yet been charged.
Child Welfare director, Julie Todd, said it was shocking that parents had failed in their responsibilities to their children in this fashion.
“There is no excuse to ever leave your child alone in a locked car. That is very irresponsible parenting and should have consequences,” Todd said.
Meanwhile, social media has been abuzz with posts from irate and shocked Pietermaritzburg residents, who have called for the children to be permanently removed from the care of their parents.
Danie Marais posted on Facebook that he believed the mother and father of the three-month-old baby should be stripped of their parental rights.
“People like this don’t deserve children,” Marais said.
Samathan Murugan posted: “These parents need to be locked in a cell and the key thrown away. What caring parent would ever leave their baby unsupervised in a locked car? Anything could happen.”
Daily News