Dayne Benoit left toddler, infant in car at Walmart, police say
Surveillance video shows father returning shoes, leaving children outside
Port St. Lucie police responding to a 911 hang-up at Walmart on Gatlin Boulevard noticed a car with its engine running and windows down, parked in the fire lane Tuesday morning.
Inside? A 2-year-old boy and a 7-month-old infant strapped into car seats with no parent in sight.
Police arrested 24-year-old Dayne Benoit after he exited the store and they explained to him it is illegal to leave children unattended in a car.
"It's very serious," Sgt. Frank Sabol said. "Anybody could have came in and just jumped in the car and taken off, and now you have two children who are potentially abducted just because of the negligence of the parent."
Benoit told police he went into Walmart just for a few minutes to exchange shoes.
His wife retrieved the children, who were unharmed, before police took Benoit to jail.