Clover man charged with neglect after leaving girlfriend’s children alone

A Clover man has been charged with neglect after allegedly leaving his girlfriend’s young children alone in a house on Old North Main Street on Wednesday afternoon.

One of the children’s father called police after he heard the children had been left alone, a Clover police report states. When police arrived, they met the father, who was with the two children, ages 1 and 5. The father said his child’s mother had a new boyfriend, Howard Welch, 20, living with her.

While officers and agents from the Department of Social Services were at the house, Welch came to the house on a bicycle and said he‘d “gone to the store for a couple of minutes.” Welch said he told the children’s mother he wouldn’t watch them.

The mother was contacted at work and said Welch told her he would watch the children.

The DSS caseworkers determined the children should be taken into emergency protective custody because neither the father nor the mother could provide adequate care.

Welch was charged with two counts of neglect of a child or helpless person and was placed on hold for another agency. He is in custody at the York County Detention Center. His bond is set at $10,000.

This story was originally published April 2, 2015 at 11:14 AM with the headline "Clover man charged with neglect after leaving girlfriend’s children alone."