A Providence man left his 3-year-old autistic son locked in a car with no heat on a cold night while he was inside a Rhode Island casino, state police say.
Mitchell Cuevas, 38, of Providence, was arrested for cruelty to or neglect of a child and obstructing an officer in execution of duty.
On Feb. 29, the Rhode Island State Police gaming enforcement unit was informed by casino patrons that a 3-year-old child had been abandoned in a vehicle in the parking lot of the Twin River Casino Hotel.
Police say Cuevas left his son alone for 30 minutes in a locked vehicle with no heat in 35-degree weather while he went inside the Twin River Casino to pass wages at the sports book.
Authorities say that Cuevas identified himself as the child's father, but that he provided investigators with false information about the child's identity and the child's mother.
Once investigators were able to positive identify the child, the Rhode Island Department of Children, Youth and Families was notified, and the child was turned over to his mother.
Cuevas was arraigned at the Lincoln Woods Barracks, processed and released on $2,000 surety bail. It's unclear if he has an attorney.
