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A Whangarei mother has been charged after allegedly leaving her 10-month-old son alone in a car while she played pokie machines in a hotel bar.
A member of the public rang police after spotting the distressed baby in a locked car in the central city.
Police found the 21-year-old mother across the road in Shunters Bar, where staff reported she had been playing the pokie machines for at least an hour.
She will appear in court.
