(HUNTINGTON, NY) Suffolk County Police today arrested a Bayville woman who left her 4-year-old son unattended in a car while shopping in Huntington Village.
Second Precinct Police Officer Peter O’Brien responded to a 3:08 p.m. call in which a witness reported a young child left unattended in a vehicle that was parked in the Wild by Nature parking lot located at 369 West Main St., Huntington. Upon arrival, Officer O’Brien observed the child in the backseat of a gray Toyota Yaris that was locked and not running. Witnesses stated that the child, who was in the car with a dog, had been in the vehicle approximately 20 minutes prior to police arrival. The outside temperature was approximately 37 degrees at the time of the incident.
A Second Precinct Police Officer responded to a call in which a a young child was left unattended in a vehicle that was parked in a parking lot in Huntington. Upon arrival, the officer observed the child in the backseat of vehicle that was locked and not running. Witnesses stated that the child, who was in the car with a dog, had been in the vehicle approximately 20 minutes prior to police arrival.
When the children’s mother, Marcela Monaco, 39, of 17A Shore Ave., Bayville, returned to the vehicle, she was arrested and charged with one count of Endangering the Welfare of a Child. Monaco was held overnight at the Fourth Precinct and is scheduled to be arraigned today at First District Court in Central Islip on March 3.
Marcela Monaco, 39, of Bayville, was arrested when she returned to the vehicle and charged with one count of Endangering the Welfare of a Child. Monaco was be held overnight at the Fourth Precinct.
A notification will be made to Suffolk County Department of Social Services Child Protective Services Bureau.
The fact that a defendant has been charged with a crime is merely an accusation and the defendant is presumed innocent unless proven guilty. Defendants are entitled to a fair trial with the burden on the prosecution to prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.
