A 41-year-old man was arrested after an alert officer patrolling Newport Centre mall found a toddler crying inside a running SUV.
According to authorities, an alert officer John Tomei, patrolling the parking garage around 11a.m. Tuesday, observed a running black Toyota Rav-4 illegally parked.
When Tomei approached the vehicle, he ultimately spotted a small child in a rear-facing car seat crying and without a jacket while temperature were only 40 degrees.
According to police, approximately 11 minutes later, the father of the 1-year-old girl returned to the vehicle claiming he had only left the child alone for two minutes.
Kevin Taurino, 41, of Bayonne, was arrested and charged with endangering the welfare of a child.
The child was taken to Jersey City Medical Center, for an evaluation. The child's mother was notified and asked pick the child up at the hospital, police said.