Craig Opdycke
A Peoria father gambled with his children’s safety after being accused of leaving his twin toddlers home alone for several hours to go to the casino to gamble.
On Wednesday, around 5 p.m., a neighbor called 911 to report that 2-year-old twins were running around alone outside of Peoria home with a dog that seemed aggressive.
The neighbor reported to police that he noticed the twins were outside for an estimated 20 minutes, playing and running near the street before he called 911. The neighbor took the twins inside his house to make sure they were safe. Police found that their garage door was open and that no adult was supervising the twins, they had in fact been left home alone. Police reported that the twins both had dirty face, feet and clothes and had full diapers.
For over 30 minutes, police made attempts to locate the children’s parents. Eventually, Craig Opdycke, 37 years old, pulled into the home’s driveway. Reports state that Opdycke told police he went to Taco Bell a mile from his house. He insisted that he was only gone for 30 minutes eating his food at the restaurant. Opdycke showed some remorse stating that he had messed up and it was “his bad” for leaving the kids that long. Police took him into custody while they waited for his wife to return home.
When Opdycke’s wife arrived to the scene, he asked to speak to officers alone. It is then that he changed his story, reportedly confessing that he did not in fact go to Taco Bell, but had driven to Desert Diamond Casino around noon, which was five hours before police were called.
Opdycke reportedly told officers that he had a gambling addiction and knew he better to leave the kids home alone. He said that he had locked the twins in their bedroom as they were napping and figured they would be safe and contained. He did not know how they escaped or how the garage door was opened.
During a search, police found Opdycke had winning tickets from the day at the casino and over $2,000 in cash. Opdycke was booked on one count of child abuse.