A mother and a grandmother will appear in the Christchurch District Court this afternoon after police found a distressed six-year old girl in a car in the Christchurch Casino carpark early this morning.
The women, one aged 41 and the other 25, have been jointly charged with wilful neglect of the child.
Christchurch Police said the women drove from North Canterbury earlier in the evening, parked their car with the sleeping six-year-old in it and went to the Casino. (at 11.49pm last night)
The little girl woke up and was extremely upset. Concerned passers-by alerted the Police.
The two intoxicated females were found in the casino around 2am. They were arrested, charged and are in custody. Other family members are looking after the child.
Inspector Dave Lawry said that police had taken this incident very seriously.
"It may be an isolated case for Christchurch, but we want to send out a very clear message that children should not be the ones who suffer while the adults responsible for them gamble at the casino," he said.
"It may also raise questions as to whether enough is being done to mitigate the effects of problematic gambling."