A baby left with a note in a car while her mother went shopping in New Zealand has sparked outrage over the weekend.
According to a report in the NZ Herald, an infant was spotted in the back of a car, strapped in a car seat with a note, asking any passerby to contact the mother if there were any problems. The baby was sleeping and luckily nothing happened while the mother went to do some shopping.
A man whose family parked next to the vehicle at the Pak'nSave Porirua parking lot about 9am on Saturday saw the baby and said they were shocked.
"It was written from the baby's perspective, and it said, 'My mum's in doing the shopping, call her if I need anything', and it had the cellphone number," he told the Herald.
"We waited there for a little bit, wondering if the mum was just going to be two seconds and come back. And my wife said, 'I'm not going in without someone being here with the baby'."
Other shoppers also came to see what was happening, with some snapping photos and posting it to Facebook. "k not cool...... what was the mother thinking!!! how hard was it to take the baby inside with you.. Umm ??? you just dont do that ....," read one comment. " You should never leave a baby in the car by there self it illegal to leave your dog in the car what happened if she chocked on her own spew wheres mum then???," another commentor wrote.
Police said that no investigation is likely, since no one has lodged a complaint or come forward with information.
In New Zealand it is illegal to leave children under the age of 14 alone for an unreasonable time or in unreasonable conditions, and can result in fines up of to NZ$2000.
Porirua police sergeant Justin Rakena said even if someone came forward, prosecution wouldn't be likely.
In most cases, he said, the best solution would be support for the parents from Child, Youth and Family Services.
