Toddler found roaming Toronto in the middle of the night reunited with parents

TORONTO — A toddler who walked out of her family’s Toronto home in the middle of the night has been reunited with her parents after spending a few hours watching cartoons at a police station.

Police said the three-year-old girl got dressed, put on her rain boots, unlocked the door and walked to a nearby grocery store while her parents slept Monday morning.

“Thankfully, this was a happy ending,” said Toronto police Const. Craig Brister. “She was spoiled at the station and was in good spirits.”

Police received a call from staff at a Sobeys grocery store in downtown Toronto around 2:30 a.m. Monday and spotted the child wandering around the parking lot, Brister said.

He said they brought the girl to a nearby police station where she watched cartoons and ate a snack.

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Officers reviewed security camera footage to see if she was with anyone, but said she appeared to be on her own.

Police then canvassed the neighbourhood looking for her caretakers, but didn’t find them, he said.

Her parents woke up a few hours later and realized their daughter was missing and immediately reported her missing, Brister said. Soon the girl was back with her parents.

He said charges won’t be laid, but cautioned parents of young children to child-proof their doors.

“It’s a tough nut to crack and you got to be aware and when they’re not in a crib, you almost have to sleep with one eye open,” Brister said.

“The big thing is just being diligent, but it’s tough because you can’t watch them 24 hours a day.”

It’s not the first time a young child has escaped a Toronto home unnoticed.

In a tragic case in February 2015, a three-year-old boy froze to death after walking out of an apartment building on a frigid morning.

Hundreds of police and volunteers scoured a neighbourhood after Elijah Marsh put on his boots and took off into the dark in just a T-shirt and diaper. 

His small body was found in the snow between two houses.

Liam Casey, The Canadian Press