A 29-year-old Quebec City father will face a child abandonment charge after his 5-year-old son was found wandering in the streets while he was allegedly drinking at a bar.
Const. Catherine Viel of the Quebec City police said the boy woke up in the middle of the night and left the apartment, located about 200 metres from where he was found by patrol officers in the Charlesbourg neighbourhood just after 12:30 a.m. ET Monday.
“He was in his underwear and he was looking for his father,” she said. “The police officer was looking for his dad too. They did a little search of the apartment, they went to bars, but they didn’t find him.”
About 45 minutes after the search started, the father returned home and was promptly arrested.
“He was, you know, under the influence of alcohol,” said Viel.
The man spent the night in police custody and will be charged later today.
The child wasn’t injured and was returned to his mother.