11.28.09
St Louis Strip Clubs: Couple left kids in van while they slept in motel
CASEYVILLE, Ill. – Authorities in St. Clair County have filed child endangerment charges against a Columbia, Mo., couple who allegedly fell asleep in a Caseyville motel room after leaving an infant and toddler in a running van outside.
Police say they first found 29-year-old Benjamin Atkins and 28-year-old Jaymie Bowling asleep in their van Friday morning in a McDonald’s parking lot. A 7-month-old boy and another boy, almost 2, were in the back seat.
Police told the couple to return to a motel where they were staying while Bowling worked at a Caseyville strip club.
Police later got a call about two unattended children in a van.
The parents were found in their motel room. Officers say Atkins appeared confused and said he thought the children were in the room with them.