State police: Drunk man filed missing child report, but just left the child at home
By Rob Polansky
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MANSFIELD, Connecticut (WFSB) — A man who filed a missing child report with state police was arrested after troopers determined that he was drunk and actually just left the child at home.
Colby Parker, 30, was charged with driving under the influence, second-degree reckless endangerment, risk of injury to a child, and second-degree breach of peace.
Troopers said they responded to a Price Chopper store on Storrs Road around 8:15 p.m. on Monday for the missing child report.
Parker told state police that he went into the store and left the child in his vehicle. He claimed that when he returned to his vehicle, the child wasn’t there.
That led to a search by Price Chopper employees, troopers, and members of the University of Connecticut and Coventry police departments. A reverse 911 call was also sent out to residents in the area.
Over the course of the investigation, personnel at Price Chopper reviewed the store’s surveillance footage.
They determined that Parker made two separate trips to the store on Monday night. Based on the recordings, the child was with Parker for the first trip but not the second trip.
Troopers said they arrived at the child’s home just before 9:15 p.m. The child was found there unharmed.
Once the child was found, troopers said they determined that Parker showed signs of impairment. They asked him to submit to a standard field sobriety test, which they said he failed.
They later determined that Parker was unaware that the child had not been with him when he went to the store for his second trip.
The Department of Children and Families was notified and responded. The child was turned over to the custody of a family member.
Parker was arrested and held on a $25,000 cash/surety bond.
He was transferred to the custody of the Connecticut Department of Correction and had a court arraignment scheduled for Tuesday in Rockville.
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