A five-year-old Arizona boy died after being left in a hot car for more than two and a half hours while his family hosted a gathering at their home in Peoria. His parents, Mihail Sabo and Anca Sabo, have been arrested and charged with negligent homicide and child abuse.
Theo Sabo was found unresponsive inside the vehicle on Sunday afternoon, as temperatures in the area reached about 106F (41C).
Police said the family had returned from another child’s baptism at about 1pm and was hosting dozens of friends and relatives. Theo apparently did not enter the house with them.
Family members later realised he was missing and found him inside the car. Relatives performed CPR before emergency responders took him to hospital, where he was pronounced dead.
Investigators said Mihail Sabo told them he had asked the couple’s 14-year-old son to remove Theo from the vehicle. The teenager told authorities he did not remember being given that instruction.
The Sabos have four other children, aged 18, 15, 14 and nine. Their lawyer has described Theo’s death as a heartbreaking accident, arguing that a tragic miscommunication took place and that the parents should not be treated as criminals.
Both parents were each held on a $150,000 bond and barred from contacting one another. They are allowed supervised visits with their other children.
