Police said a "concerned citizen" located the child and was able to guide them to their home after they were seen wandering the neighborhood without clothes
Credit: wv.gov
NEED TO KNOW
- A West Virginia man has been charged with child neglect after he allegedly left his young child alone and later told police, “I don’t watch kids”
- Police said a “concerned citizen” located the child wandering the neighborhood alone and was able to guide them to their home
- The child was wearing only a diaper when found
A West Virginia man has been charged with child neglect after he allegedly left his young child alone and later told police that he doesn't "watch kids."
Police in Saint Albans, W.V., announced in a Facebook post that they had arrested a man, identified as 42-year-old Mark Blake Jr., for an incident that occurred on Wednesday, April 15.
Officers were called to the town's Kanawha Terrace area after receiving a report of a small child who was found walking alone in the neighborhood, wearing only a diaper.
Police said a "concerned citizen" located the child and was able to guide them to their home. After knocking on the home's door and receiving no response, the person called 911.
Credit: wv.gov
Officers then made "repeated attempts" to contact an adult at the house, but they received no response, police said. They searched the home and found Blake, the child's father, asleep upstairs.
When he spoke to police at the door, he allegedly told them, "This isn't my deal. I don't watch kids."
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Officials wrote in their statement that Blake was on bond for a similar incident in August 2025.
Blake was charged with child neglect creating risk of injury. Arrest records reviewed by PEOPLE show that he is being held at the South Central Regional Jail on a $25,000 cash bond.
If you suspect child abuse, call the Childhelp National Child Abuse Hotline at 1-800-4-A-Child or 1-800-422-4453, or go to www.childhelp.org. All calls are toll-free and confidential. The hotline is available 24/7 in more than 170 languages.
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