Crime & Safety

Man Left Child in Hot SUV During Fast Food Stop: Police

A 47-year-old Posen man was charged with misdemeanor endangering the life of a child on Aug. 21, Midlothian police said.

A Posen man who stopped for chicken in Midlothian left a small boy locked inside an SUV on a hot day, police said.

Innocent N. Dioh, 47, of the 14800 block of South California Avenue, Posen, was charged with endangering the life or health of a child, Midlothian police said.

Officers were called at about 6:37 p.m. on Aug. 21 to KFC, 14559 S. Pulaski Rd., to investigate a report of a child locked in a vehicle with the windows rolled up, police said. They found a small boy belted into a car seat in a green Land Rover.

The windows on the SUV were rolled all the way up and the doors were locked, police said. According to the National Weather Service, the temperature had reached 87 degrees at the time the child was found. The caller told police that the driver, Dioh, was inside the fast-food chicken restaurant.

Cops found Dioh standing by the counter and escorted him to the parking lot, police said. Dioh said he was only getting food and had left the driver's side window rolled down about 1 inch.

A manager at KFC informed police Dioh had placed an order in the drive-through, but parked his car and went into the restaurant. Another customer came asking about the boy left in the SUV. The manager called police after Innocent went outside but returned to the restaurant without the child.

Dioh admitted to walking out to the car while the child was crying and rolling down the window, police said. He also told officers went into the restaurant because he didn't like waiting in line at the drive-through. Police called the Illinois Department of Child and Family Services about the incident, who were able to get the child back to his mother.

Police Blotter information is provided by the Midlothian Police Department. Charges are not evidence of guilt. They are a record of police actions taken on a given day, and persons charged with a crime are presumed innocent until proven guilty in court. If you or a family member are charged or cited and the case is subsequently adjudicated, we encourage you to notify the editor. We will verify and report the outcome.


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