Traffic stop finds child not wearing seatbelt and perched on toolbox

The RCMP says an officer who pulled over a suspected drunk driver found something troubling in the backseat of the man’s vehicle — a six-year-old sitting on a toolbox without a seatbelt.

In a media release Monday, the Mounties said an officer from the Saskatchewan RCMP’s Roving Traffic Unit stopped a truck in Cut Knife on Friday at around 11:40 p.m.

The officer determined the man driving the truck was impaired and he was arrested. There were three passengers in the vehicle, including a six-year-old child in the backseat.

According to the RCMP, the seat was folded up and the child was sitting on a toolbox and folded-up clothing, and wasn’t wearing a seatbelt. Police arranged for another adult to pick up the child.

“This was a very dangerous situation — an impaired driver and a small child not properly secured in a car seat or with a seatbelt,” Staff Sgt. Chad McLeod, North District commander of the Saskatchewan RCMP’s Combined Traffic Services Saskatchewan, said in the release.

“By conducting this traffic stop, the officer removed a huge risk from the road — and was able to ensure this little one was safe.”

The 34-year-old driver of the truck was charged with impaired operation of a conveyance and operation of a conveyance over .08. The RCMP also impounded the truck for 30 days.