The parents of a 5-year-old boy are demanding answers after they say the child walked away unnoticed from an after-school program and was discovered about a mile away.
Oliver Esptein, 5, attends an after-school program at North Park Elementary School in Valencia.
But on Nov. 4, his parents said the unthinkable happened when the boy somehow slipped out of the school and began walking on the busy streets nearby. Natalie Epstein, the boy’s mother, said the after-school attendants didn’t even realize Oliver was gone.
The boy’s parents believed he may have been gone for several hours before he was found nearly a mile away from the school.
Oliver Esptein, 5, was found about a mile away from his after-school program at North Park Elementary School in Valencia. (Epstein Family)
Oliver Esptein, 5, was found about a mile away from his after-school program at North Park Elementary School in Valencia. (Epstein Family)
The busy parking lot of the McDonald’s fast food restaurant where Oliver Epstein was discovered. (KTLA)
North Park Elementary School in Valencia, California. (KTLA)
North Park Elementary School in Valencia, California. (Google Maps)
North Park Elementary School in Valencia, California. (Google Maps)
The boy’s father, Brett Epstein, told The Santa Clarita Valley Signal that he received a call from his nanny, who had spotted his son alone and unsupervised near a McDonald’s restaurant.
To reach that shopping plaza, Oliver had to cross the street at least once along busy McBean Parkway.
“It’s really bad between Copperhill and McBean,” Natalie told KTLA’s Sandra Mitchell. “The cars are racing by. When he was found, he was crying. It’s heartbreaking as a mother.”
The couple said they called the after-school attendants to ask about their son’s whereabouts and were reportedly told he was on campus when he had already walked away.
“It took us to find our son on the street,” Natalie said. “To call them and have them tell us, ‘Oh he’s here.’”
The couple has since removed Oliver from the after-school program. Brett believes major changes need to be made at the school when it comes to student safety.
The boy’s parents said they feared for the worst, thinking about their child alone and the possibility of him being hit by a car or even abducted.
“There are so many obvious things that have to be done,” Brett said. “They know what has to be done and for whatever reason, they haven’t been done. It was proven by this breach that happened with our 5-year-old out on the streets alone.”
Some of the changes they’re hoping for include hiring more after-school attendants, ensuring the campus gate is always locked and the installation of more security cameras.
KTLA reached out to the Saugus Unified School District for a statement, but has not heard back.
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