NJ mother left toddler in hot car while she gambled inside casino, police say
The Willingboro woman is facing child endangerment charges.
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A Willingboro woman was arrested after police say she left a 14-month-old boy in the backseat of a locked car while she gambled at a Pennsylvania casino for more than two hours.
Leola Dualuqua, 37, was arrested April 14 at Parx Casino in Bensalem, Pa. According to police, officers responded to the parking lot of the casino at 8:53 p.m. for a report of an unattended child inside a vehicle. When police arrived, they found the 14-month-old boy inside the locked car. Officials say the windows were closed and the vehicle was not running.
“The child appeared to be sleeping but was visibly sweating, as outside temperatures were in the mid-80s,” Bensalem police said in a statement.
Officers managed to get inside the vehicle and removed the toddler, who was transported to a local hospital. After being evaluated, the child was released to the custody of his father.
With the help of security officers at Parx Casino, investigators determined that Dualuqua left the toddler in the vehicle at about 6:28 p.m. and didn’t return to the vehicle.
“She was later located inside the casino actively gambling,” Bensalem police said in a statement.
Dualuqua was charged with endangering the welfare of a child and leaving a child unattended in a motor vehicle. She was later transported to Bucks County Correctional Facility in Pennsylvania.
According to AAA Northeast, on a typical 80-degree summer day, the interior temperature of a vehicle climbs by 20 degrees in only 10 minutes. Temperatures inside the vehicle can reach a deadly 109 degrees in 20 minutes. On hotter days, the interior temperature can go as high as 140 degrees, and AAA says even cracking a window open “has little effect.”
