Police were called to a car boot sale off Otley Old Road in Bramhope, near Leeds Bradford Airport, after a baby was reportedly left alone inside a hot car. Concerned passers-by alerted authorities on the morning of 2 August.
Content creator Jody Lloyd-Francis shared a video of the incident in a public Facebook post. According to LeedsLive, by the morning of 2 August the post had drawn more than 5,800 reactions and over 1,200 comments, with many people expressing concern and debating how the situation should have been handled.
Baby found 'strapped into a car seat'
In her post, Lloyd-Francis claimed a baby was found alone in a "very hot car" at the boot sale. She wrote that the child was "just strapped into a car seat" with "no water, no adult, no milk," and said wardens attempted to find the owner before police arrived.
In an update, she clarified she was not the first person at the scene. She said she had been told the person who initially found the child immediately contacted police and followed their instructions. She added: "Both parents were at the car boot sale," and while attempts were made to locate them, "nobody will ever know how long the baby was there prior to being seen."
Online reaction and police response
The post prompted hundreds of responses from the public. Sparkling Cleans Gardens commented: "Why did no one smash a window? People smash windows for dogs left in a car all the time, not for a baby. I wouldn't have waited half an hour, no way." Sally Brown replied: "I would've smashed the window too much waiting around."
Responding, Lloyd-Francis said staff at the event "were amazing" but were concerned about frightening the baby and potentially getting into trouble with police. Teresa Parkes claimed she overheard an officer tell the parents: "You don't know how lucky you are to not be getting arrested."
West Yorkshire Police confirmed officers attended and enquiries remain ongoing. A spokesperson said: "Police were called to a car boot sale off Otley Old Road, Bramhope, at 9:44am yesterday (2 August) following reports of child neglect. This related to a child reportedly left in the back of a car alone. The child's parents were identified and spoken to by officers. Enquiries are continuing to establish what happened."
