Toddler dies after being left in car with heater on for 5 hours while mother allegedly drank with friend

WEST CARSON, Calif. (KTLA) -- Authorities are investigating the death of a 2-year-old girl who was left in a car with the heater on and windows rolled up for more than five hours while her mother drank with a friend nearby, records show.

June Love Augusto died at a hospital on Sept. 23 after she was found unconscious inside her mother's vehicle, which was parked in the 22400 block of South Vermont Avenue in the unincorporated county area of West Carson during the early-morning hours, according to a reports issued by the Los Angeles County Department of Medical Examiner-Coroner. An autopsy was performed, but her cause of death was yet to be determined pending the results of further forensic tests.

After first telling officials she left the child alone for only a few minutes while she knocked on a babysitter's door, she ultimately admitted that was not the case, according to the coroner's report.

The girl's mother told investigators she left the child in the car, alone, about 11:30 p.m. on Sept. 21, then got into another vehicle nearby to drink alcohol with a friend, according to the coroner's report. The woman said she turned on the car's heater and placed a blanket on her daughters lap so she wouldn't get cold.