Round Rock police say mother abandoned five children to visit Myrtle Beach

ROUND ROCK, Texas (FOX 7 Austin) - Police said a Round Rock woman left her children home alone for several days while she traveled to South Carolina. 28-year-old Chrystal Walraven has been charged with child abandonment.

Police said there were five children living at Walraven's home while she was out of state. Their ages range from 15 months to 12 years old. The Round Rock Police Department said they visited the Walraven’s home in late August after the Gattis Elementary School principal expressed concern over a student's current living situation.

According to court documents, Walraven's children complained to the principal about having to stay up all night to change their sibling's diapers. Police report that when they visited the home on High Point Drive it smelled like garbage and feces. The officers said there was an infant in a crib near the front door, and four other children age 12 and under alone in the home.

Paperwork described the house as being in disarray, with stained carpets, scattered dirty diapers, and accessible knives. At that time, officers called Child Protective Services.

Police contacted the father of some of the children who claimed a neighbor was watching them while their mother was away. When officers contacted that neighbor, she claimed the father of another child was checking on them.

Police said that man also believed he was not responsible for supervising the kids.

When police located Walraven, she admitted to taking a trip to Myrtle Beach for four days to check out a job. Court documents said Chrystal told police she should not have left the kids alone.

Neighbors told FOX 7, they assumed Walraven was at work.

They explained that Walraven’s children often play outside until midnight, so that wasn't out of the ordinary, and said the kids appeared excited when CPS arrived.

A warrant was issued for Walraven's arrest in early February. She turned herself in on child abandonment and endangerment charges February 11 and bonded out the same day.

Abandoning or endangering a child is a second degree felony, punishable by 2-20 years in prison.

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