PANORAMA CITY, Calif. - A man was in custody after allegedly leaving his 9-month-old daughter in a car while he went into a nearby strip club in the Los Angeles area, authorities said.
Auwin Dargin, 24, of Van Nuys was arrested about 3:15 p.m. Wednesday in the 8100 block of Langdon Avenue, said Los Angeles police Officer Jane Kim. Dargin was booked on suspicion of felony child endangerment, and was held on $100,000 bail.
"He parked and walked about two blocks to the club," Kim said.
The temperature at the time was reported to be 77 degrees, Kim said. The child was released to the custody of her mother, Kim said.
According to NBC4 in Los Angeles, people near the parking lot at Synn Gentleman's Club near Roscoe and Sepulveda boulevards heard the baby crying, opened the door to get her out, and called 911.
"In the midst of them calling the police, the father came out from the strip joint and basically wanted to take the baby," LAPD Officer Charles Chacon told Channel 4.
The passers-by refused to let the father take his crying daughter, and stayed with her until officers arrived, NBC4 reported.
"He basically was not thinking, is what he said," Chacon said.
The girl was taken to a nearby hospital and was suffering from mild dehydration, Channel 4 reported.
"I thought it was unbelievable," Chacon said. "I could not believe a father would put his child in that type of danger."
