Pennsylvania Pastor Allegedly Left Two Toddlers in Car While He Gambled at Casino

Posted on: August 9, 2021, 02:34h. 

Last updated on: August 10, 2021, 11:39h.

Ed Silverstein @casinoorgedsilv Read More
Expertise: Legal, Tribal Gaming.

A Pennsylvania pastor will be appearing in court for allegedly leaving two children alone in a parked car while he played slot machines and ate some nachos at Live! Casino Pittsburgh. The children are his one- and three-year-old daughters.

He is scheduled to appear in local court on Tuesday
Zachary Bohinski, 28, a Pennsylvania pastor, allegedly left his two daughters in a car while he went into a casino to gamble and eat nachos, police said. (Image: KDKA)

Zachary Bohinski, 28, who was identified as the pastor at Fells Methodist Church in Rostraver, now faces two counts of endangering the welfare of a child and disorderly conduct, KDKA, a local TV station, reported.

While his daughters were in the car on July 31, Bohinski went into the property’s Guy Fieri’s restaurant and ate an order of “trash can nachos,” KDKA said. Then he won $1,600 on the slots.

He is scheduled to appear in local court on Tuesday, according to WTAE, another local TV station.

Bohinski: ‘AC Was On’

In a statement to state police, Bohinski claimed he left the car running, KDKA said. That way, the air conditioning stayed on, but he still allegedly left the girls alone in the car.

However, individuals are not allowed to leave children unattended in a vehicle, state trooper Stephen Limani stated in a statement to KDKA.

When Bohinski eventually got back to his car about a half-hour later, state troopers were there. Some passersby had spotted the children in the car and notified authorities. The children were not injured, KDKA said.

Bohinski claimed he left the car running
Live! Casino Pittsburgh, when it opened last year, pictured above. A car in the parking lot had two young children inside alone recently, leading to the father’s arrest. (Image: Wikimedia)

Prior Unattended Children in Car

This is far from the only instance of players at casinos leaving children alone in a car while adults went to gamble.

Last month, an Illinois man was arrested after allegedly leaving a 7-year-old boy in a car parked at Rivers Casino in Des Plaines.

John Elliott, 44, of Schiller Park, Ill., was charged with endangering the life or health of a child following the Rivers Casino episode, according to the Daily Herald, an Illinois newspaper. Elliott allegedly left the boy in the car. Then, about 20 minutes later, the child climbed out of the car. He was found by a security guard.

The incident came a couple of days after a similar allegation against another person involving a baby in the much warmer Nevada climate.

A six-month-old boy was left in a parked car at Bighorn Casino in North Las Vegas, Nev. He had been found alone. A passerby heard the baby crying and contacted authorities. The car’s windows were partially rolled down.

A man was later arrested, and police said he was gambling in the venue and appeared intoxicated. Mitchell Anthony Hooks, 39, of Las Vegas was located in the casino. Hooks was charged with child abuse and leaving a child unattended in a motor vehicle, KLAS, a Nevada TV station, reported. The child was taken to a Nevada hospital for an exam.