Baby dies in car as parents play pachinko

TSU, Mie Pref. (Kyodo) A 6-month-old girl died Tuesday night after her parents left her alone in a car for 12 hours while they played pachinko in Mie Prefecture, police said.

An autopsy is planned.

According to police, the parents, who live in the city of Inabe, Mie Prefecture, stayed in the pachinko parlor in the city for about 12 hours starting Tuesday morning while the baby was left in their minicar in the parking lot.

When they emerged from the parlor at around 9:30 p.m., they found the baby in a weakened state and took her to a nearby hospital. She was pronounced dead about an hour later, police said.

Police quoted the parents as saying that while they were playing pachinko, they occasionally went to the parking lot to check on the baby through the car's windows.

They thought she was simply sleeping in the child seat, and never bothered to touch or feed her during the period, according to police.