A Fayetteville father is behind bars after police found two children playing outside in an overturned trash can.
According to a police report, Fayetteville Police were called on a welfare check on Sunday, April 3. The caller said that two young children were playing outside in their underwear and no shoes, the police report states.
When police arrived, they found two children, one in their underwear and the other in a diaper, playing outside of a trailer in an overturned trash can.
The police report states that the children said they had not eaten.
The officer took the two children back inside of the trailer where he located the father, 40-year-old James Thigpen.
According to the police report, Thigpen was passed out on a mattress in the living room floor. The officer says he was inside the trailer for about 20 minutes before Thigpen woke up.
Thigpen told the officer he had gone to bed around 3 a.m. and was just tired. The police report states that Thigpen requested a breath test when the officer accused him of being intoxicated.
A breath test was administered to Thigpen which resulted in a .22 blood-alcohol content, according to the police report.
The two children were picked up by their mother.
Thigpen was arrested for Endangering the Welfare of a Minor. He was booked into the Washington County Detention Center.
