HALLANDALE BEACH, Fla. – Police on Tuesday released surveillance video showing two sisters inside Mardi Gras Casino after investigators say they left four children locked inside a car in the parking lot.
Police charged 27-year-old Malory Pierre (left) and 31-year-old Romanie Pierre (right) with four counts child neglect each. They posted bond Monday.
"Both of you took a car full of children -- ages 8, 5, 4, and 2 -- to the Mardi Gras Casino in Hallandale [Beach] in the evening and then left the children in the car with the car running," Broward Court Circuit Judge John Hurley said Monday during their bond court hearing.
According to an arrest affidavit, a woman called 911 after seeing the vehicle in the parking lot with its doors locked.
The 8-year-old girl reportedly told police, "My stepmother and her sister went inside and left us here."
The women denied gambling while inside the casino, but police said surveillance video showed them opening an account and playing multiple slot machines for 21 minutes. Romanie Pierre said she went inside to use the bathroom; Malory Pierre said she went inside to ask a question, police said.
"I'm going to order both of you, Malory and Romanie, not to go to a casino while you're out on bond, alright?" said Hurley. "That's reasonable."
The Department of Children and Families is investigating.