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CARPINTERIA, Calif. – The father of a 6-year-old girl will face charges for abandoning her while he walked along the beach.

On Monday, April 15, 2019, at around 11:30 p.m., deputies responded to the report of the small child looking for her father. She said that he father pulled over to use the restroom at Viola Fields located in the 6100 block of Carpinteria Avenue. After waiting for several hours, the frantic child went looking for her father in the dark parking lot. She found a custodian in the 6200 block of Carpinteria and asked him for help. The custodian called 911 and deputies arrived to help search for her father, identified as German Noe Sotelo, 39, of Carpinteria.

Deputies searched the area, but later requested assistance from the K9 team and Ventura County Air Support Helicopter. The K-9 team led authorities to the Venoco Pier area, where Sotelo was seen walking on the beach. When he saw the helicopter, he jumped into the ocean and began swimming away. Sotelo was rescued by the U.S. Coast Guard after being in the water for over an hour, according to the news release. He was taken to the hospital for medical treatment and medical clearance. Once cleared he will be booked into jail for Child Endangerment.

“Child Welfare Services responded to Carpinteria and spoke to both the mother and the child,” Santa Barbara Sheriff officials said. “The child was frightened but fortunately not injured. She was reunited with her mother and released to her custody.”