THEY LEFT THREE CHILDREN HOME ALONE — THEN POLICE LEARNED WHY THEIR PARENTS WERE 20 MINUTES AWAY

They weren’t at work.

They weren’t dealing with an emergency.

According to police, they were playing pickleball.

An Oklahoma couple is facing multiple child-neglect charges after authorities say they left their three young children — including a 1-year-old toddler — home without adult supervision while they traveled to another city to play pickleball.

The children were just 8, 5 and 1 years old.

And the discovery reportedly began with a concerned family member who wasn’t convinced the children were actually being supervised.

THE CALL THAT STARTED EVERYTHING

The incident happened on August 30, 2026, in Glenpool, Oklahoma.

According to the Glenpool Police Department, authorities received a report raising concerns that three children had been left alone at their home.

The person who reported the situation also contacted the children’s mother, Feather Roberts.

Roberts allegedly said that she and the children’s father, Andrew Dick, were playing pickleball at a facility in nearby Bixby — approximately a 20-minute drive from their home.

But she reportedly gave the caller another important piece of information.

The children, she said, were with babysitters.

The caller apparently wasn’t convinced.

Instead of simply accepting the explanation, the person went to the family’s home to check.

What they found prompted another call for help.

There was no adult supervising the children.

THREE CHILDREN — INCLUDING A ONE-YEAR-OLD

When Glenpool officers arrived, they reportedly found the 8-year-old and 5-year-old watching television.

The youngest child, only 1 year old, was asleep.

No adult was present.

The children were ultimately found safe and in good health, according to police.

But investigators still had questions.

Where were their parents?

And why had the children been left without an adult?

The answer would reportedly come when Roberts and Dick returned home.

“THEY HAVE AN IPAD”

According to police, officers asked Roberts how the children were supposed to contact their parents if an emergency occurred.

Her alleged answer has since become one of the most talked-about details of the case.

Roberts reportedly told officers that the children had access to an iPad that they could use to contact their parents if necessary.

But the device did not change the central issue investigators were examining.

The children were still allegedly alone.

And their parents were approximately 20 minutes away playing pickleball.

POLICE SAY THIS WASN’T THE FIRST TIME

Then investigators allegedly uncovered another troubling detail.

According to the Glenpool Police Department, this was not the first time the couple had left the children home without adult supervision.

That allegation significantly changed the picture facing investigators.

What initially appeared to be a single incident was now being investigated as part of a potentially repeated pattern.

Police also learned that Dick and Roberts have a fourth child, an infant, for whom childcare had reportedly been arranged.

That meant investigators were dealing with different childcare arrangements for the children — with the three older children allegedly left at home without an adult while the parents went out.

THE BABYSITTER QUESTION

One of the most striking aspects of the case is the discrepancy between what Roberts allegedly told the concerned caller and what police later found.

The caller was reportedly told that the children were with babysitters.

But when the caller went to the residence, there was no adult caregiver there.

Police subsequently arrived and found the children alone.

Authorities have not alleged that the children were injured during the incident.

In fact, police said all three were safe and healthy when officers encountered them.

But prosecutors do not need a child to suffer physical injury for a neglect investigation to take place.

The allegations instead focus on the circumstances in which the children were left unsupervised.

THE PARENTS NOW FACE SIX COUNTS

Both Roberts and Dick were arrested on August 30.

Each faces three counts of child neglect — one count relating to each of the three children allegedly left without supervision.

The Oklahoma Department of Human Services was notified following the arrests.

The criminal allegations remain accusations, and the couple is presumed innocent unless proven guilty in court.

WHY THE AGES MATTER

The children’s ages are a major part of the story.

An 8-year-old and a 5-year-old were allegedly left together with a 1-year-old toddler.

That youngest child is not simply another school-aged child capable of handling an emergency independently.

The case has therefore triggered a wider debate about what constitutes reasonable supervision — particularly when very young children are involved.

The parents’ alleged explanation involving an iPad has also fueled intense reactions online.

Some have questioned whether technology can realistically substitute for an adult caregiver when a 1-year-old is involved.

Others have pointed to the allegation that the children had previously been left alone, saying that the larger concern may be the alleged pattern rather than one afternoon away from home.

THE CHILDREN WERE SAFE — BUT QUESTIONS REMAIN

Fortunately, the immediate outcome could have been far worse.

The children were not reported injured.

Officers found them safe and in good health.

But investigators were left examining why three young children were allegedly left without an adult in the first place — and why the parents were reportedly more than a short walk away.

There is also the question of the alleged babysitter.

If a babysitter had actually been arranged, investigators will have to determine who that person was and why no adult was present when the caller and police arrived.

And if police are correct that this had happened before, investigators may also examine the circumstances of those previous occasions.

A PICKLEBALL TRIP THAT ENDED IN ARRESTS

What began as an ordinary recreational outing allegedly ended with both parents in custody.

According to police, Dick and Roberts went to Bixby to play pickleball while their three young children remained at home.

A concerned person became suspicious.

A visit to the house reportedly confirmed those fears.

Police arrived.

The parents returned.

And investigators say they discovered that the incident may not have been isolated.

Now, what looked like a simple afternoon away has become a criminal case involving six counts of child neglect.

The children are safe.

But for investigators, the bigger question is no longer simply where were the parents that afternoon?

It’s whether authorities are looking at one lapse in judgment — or an alleged pattern of leaving very young children without the supervision they needed.