Police: Mother, Aunt Arrested for Leaving Baby In Car While Shopping

A Meriden mother was arrested and charged with allegedly leaving her 6-month-old girl alone in a car as she and the baby's aunt shopped – returning to the car 20 minutes after officers arrived, Meriden Police said Monday.

A shopper in the Burlington Coat Factory parking lot in Meriden's Townline Square plaza heard crying from the car next to hers after she pulled in on Saturday, according to Meriden Police Spokesman Det. Lt. Mark Walerysiak. A six-month-old baby was in the car, crying loudly.

"There was a crack in the window. She fit her arm into it, opened the door, and took the child out to console it," Walerysiak said.

The woman called police, who responded to the scene and took the child to MidState Medical Center for medical evaluation. The child was uninjured, police said.

Twenty minutes after police arrived, the child's mother Lisdamary Sepulveda, 24, of 142 Miller St., Meriden and aunt Carman Mercado, 38, of 254 Crown St., returned to the car, and were arrested by officers who remained on scene.

Both Sepulveda and Mercado were charged with risk of injury to a child. The mother was given a $2,500 bond, the aunt, a $1,500 bond, and have a March 30 court date. The state Department of Children and Families was called for the case, but police did not have information as to the current whereabouts of the child. 

"Under no circumstances can you leave a child unattended in a vehicle," Walerysiak said of the laws pertaining to the issue.