Mother Leaves Children Unattended and Has Serious Auto Accident NR11452rf

Los Angeles:  LAPD Valley Traffic Division (VTD) detectives are investigating a traffic collision during which a North Hollywood woman left at least three children unattended and went for a drive that resulted in a collision with two parked cars.

This morning at around 2:30, 35-year-old Lisette Gonzalez Avakian was driving a 1994 Toyota Corolla on Whitnall Highway when she collided with a parked car.  She then continued heading south and struck another parked vehicle before overturning her car on the roadway.  Avakian then left her car, leaving behind her 4-year-old daughter who was still in her car seat and was later found hiding behind some bushes near the collision site.

During a preliminary investigation and vehicle search, VTD officers suspected Avakian may have had more children but were unable to locate any in the immediate area of the accident.  They also conducted a field sobriety test on her.  Officers found a number of possible addresses as they inspected her vehicle, and follow-up investigations were conducted to find out if other children had been left unattended at these locations. Consequently, officers found two more children at one of the addresses, a 1-year-old toddler and a 3-month-old baby.  All three children were taken into protective custody and placed with the Los Angeles County Department of Child and Family Services.

There were no serious injuries to anyone as a result of the collision; however Avakian was arrested for driving under the influence, and her bail was set at $100,000.  Pending charges against her also include child endangerment.

LAPD VTD detectives are leading the investigation of this incident and ask that anyone with information about the suspect or the incident contact Officer Fuentes at 818-644-8022 or Detective Bustos at 818-644-8021. During non-business hours or on weekends, calls should be directed to 1-877-LAPD-24-7 (1-877-527-3247).   Anyone wishing to remain anonymous should call Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-TIPS (1-800-222-8477).  Tipsters may also contact Crime Stoppers by texting to phone number 274637 (C-R-I-M-E-S on most keypads) with a cell phone.  All text messages should begin with the letters “LAPD.” Tipsters may also go to LAPDOnline.org, click on "webtips" and follow the prompts.