A small child was found abandoned in a vehicle parked near North Avenue and Massena Avenue in Waukegan on June 30, 2024. | Photo: Google Street View

The parents of a toddler, who have 11 pending DCFS cases against them, were arrested after they left their young child unattended in a car for at least eight hours in Waukegan.

The Waukegan Police Department responded around 8 a.m. on June 30 to a call of an abandoned child at North Avenue and Massena Avenue.

Lake County Assistant State’s Attorney Emily Shanley-Roberts said the passerby reported a small child was left unattended in a black car which was in the sun.

Officers found a 3-year-old non-verbal child who had soiled herself.

She was inside the unlocked car with the windows rolled up, Shanley-Roberts said.

Officers located the parents, who apparently did not realize the child was in the car until police told them.

Shanley-Roberts said the parents have seven other children and have 11 pending DCFS cases.

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Officers learned the parents had come home from Six Flags around 11:30 p.m. the prior night.

The parents removed seven of their eight children from the car and went to bed but forgot the eighth child, Shanley-Roberts said.

The child was evaluated by paramedics and was unharmed.

Officers arrested Nayeli Mendez, 29, of Waukegan, and Silvestre Flores, 27, of Waukegan, and they were both charged with misdemeanor child endangerment.

The charge is non-detainable under the Illinois SAFE-T Act and the two were released from custody following a First Appearance Court hearing.