Gamblers abandon children in casinos

Photo / APN

More than 140 children have been abandoned in New Zealand casinos in the past 2 years - but that could be the "tip of the iceberg" when it comes to gambling-related child neglect, experts say.

New Department of Internal Affairs figures this week revealed 19 cases in 2011 so far, compared with 49 in 2010 and 23 in 2009.

The 91 cases involved a total of 144 children, including a 4-month-old found in a vehicle parked at SkyCity casino in Auckland in February 2009.

In May last year, police were called to the same casino after a child was abandoned while his grandparents played bingo.

Heather McShane of Internal Affairs' gambling compliance group said most of the children were found at SkyCity, the biggest casino in the country.

Most were left alone for less than an hour. But in one case the child was abandoned for five hours.

"Some children had been left in nearby entertainment facilities and had come to the casino to find their parents ... On a small number of occasions children had been left at nearby restaurants."

Other children were found alone in hotels, or in the main entry areas of casinos, while their parents gambled.

"In a very small number of cases children had been left in vehicles in the carpark while the parent or carer gambled," Ms McShane said.

"In many cases, the police were called in. When the police did attend, warnings were issued and for a minority of cases, charges were laid.

"For the majority of cases, the casinos issued two-year exclusion orders to the carers and often also issued trespass notices. However, for the more minor cases, for example a grandparent leaving a child for a few minutes to look for a parent in the casino, only warnings were issued."

Problem Gambling Foundation chief executive Graeme Ramsey said abandoned children at casinos were a "serious problem".

"This is the tip of the iceberg in terms of child neglect," he said. "We know children go without because of gambling. This is often thought of in terms of milk and bread but it is time and attention they miss out on too."

Mr Ramsey said people who left children alone while they gamed had obvious gambling problems.

He said children left alone by the adults responsible for them often felt abandoned.

"We know that abandonment can affect psychological wellbeing into adulthood."

SkyCity general counsel Peter Treacy said the company had a zero-tolerance policy when it came to children in its facilities.

"We treat these matters very seriously and we take immediate action," he said.

"We do everything we can to ensure it doesn't happen and we do a pretty good job. But I would have thought parents must take responsibility for their children as well."

Mr Treacy said all staff were briefed to watch for any children under 14 who might be without an adult. "Everybody is on high alert."