A South Carolina father was arrested after police said he left his 6-year-old daughter sleeping outside a Target store while he went home, allegedly to save his spot in line for the release of a new Pokémon trading card collection.
John-Michael Dooley, 35, of Johns Island, was taken into custody Friday after Charleston police responded to reports of an unattended child outside a Target in the city’s West Ashley neighborhood at about 2:30 a.m.
According to the Charleston Police Department, a crowd of customers had gathered outside the store overnight ahead of the highly anticipated Pokémon card release.
Witnesses told officers that Dooley provided his daughter with a pillow and blanket before leaving her asleep in the line sometime after 1 a.m. When roughly an hour passed and he had not returned, concerned shoppers called police.
Officers said Dooley came back to the store while they were investigating, and witnesses identified him as the child’s father. He was then arrested.
Police said Dooley later told detectives that he had gone home and left his daughter alone so he could keep his place in line and avoid losing the chance to buy the Pokémon cards.
The child was not injured. She was placed in emergency protective custody with the South Carolina Department of Social Services, authorities said.
Dooley faces a charge of unlawful conduct toward a child and has been released from custody, a Charleston Police Department spokesperson told ABC News, referencing information posted on the Charleston County Sheriff’s Office website.
A Target spokesperson told ABC News, speaking on background, that the store was closed when the incident occurred and that the company would cooperate with investigators.
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