Arizona Parents Charged After 5-Year-Old Dies in Hot Car During Party
The father allegedly blamed his teenage son for not removing the child from the vehicle.
A 5-year-old boy died after being left in a car on a scorching 106-degree Fahrenheit day in Peoria, Arizona, while his parents hosted a party. Theo Sabo was discovered unresponsive in the family vehicle more than two and a half hours after they returned home from a baptism.
The boy's parents, Mihail Sabo, 50, and Anca Sabo, 45, have been charged with negligent homicide and child abuse. According to reports, Mihail Sabo told police that he had asked his 14-year-old son to retrieve Theo from the car upon their arrival home. However, the teenage son reportedly denied being asked to do so.
During court hearings, Anca Sabo was visibly distressed, weeping and pleading to see her other children. Their defense attorney, Leah Dodd, argued that the charges were unwarranted, characterizing the incident as an unimaginable tragedy. Dodd reiterated Mihail's claim that he had instructed his 14-year-old son to get Theo from the car, emphasizing that this was not a case of a young child being asked to retrieve another.
"Mom is hosting a party at their home, assumes dad is gonna get [Theo]. Dad asks the 14-year-old. That’s not asking a young child to get another child out of the vehicle," Dodd stated in court. She also argued that Anca Sabo followed standard procedures after discovering the child, including calling 911 and administering life-saving efforts.
Prosecutors, however, contended that the child was left in the car for an extended period while the parents were unaware of his location. The couple has four other children, aged 18, 15, 14, and 9. Their defense attorney mentioned that the parents had been married for nearly 20 years and had lived in Arizona since 2011.
Mihail and Anca Sabo were each issued $150,000 bonds and are prohibited from contacting each other. They are permitted supervised visitation with their remaining children. The parents are scheduled to return to court on September 21.
A GoFundMe page established for the family described Theo as "deeply loved" and stated that his "precious life will never be forgotten."