In a troubling incident in Phoenix, four young children were reportedly left in a vehicle that reached a staggering 125 degrees, while their father spent nearly an hour in a sex shop.
Ascencio Largo, 38, was charged with child abuse on Thursday after police responded to multiple calls about children abandoned in a car.
Officers arrived at a parking lot near 24th Avenue and Madison Street, where they discovered several kids in a non-operating vehicle. They managed to break into the car and secure the children, according to Phoenix Police.
The interior temperature was incredibly high, hitting 125 degrees. The children, aged 2, 3, 4, and 7, displayed signs of overheating, like skin discoloration and sweating. Phoenix police sergeant Rob Sheller mentioned that their internal temperatures were close to 100 degrees.
Thankfully, all four children were safely removed and quickly treated with water before being placed in an air-conditioned police SUV and transported to a local hospital.
After the rescue, police contacted Largo, who had been enjoying his time at the shop, which reportedly features an adult arcade with private rooms for “sexual exploration.”
Officers attempted to reach Largo multiple times inside the store without any response. Maricopa County Commissioner Jane McLaughlin called the situation “shocking” during his court appearance.
When Largo finally returned, he allegedly tried to distance himself from the car, raising eyebrows. “It simply reflects a serious level of negligence. It’s hard to believe that anyone in Arizona would be unaware of the dangers of leaving children or pets in a locked vehicle,” McLaughlin commented.
Additionally, police observed signs of alcohol on Largo’s breath, and his driver’s license had ignition interlock requirements that were not met in his vehicle.
He now faces four counts of child abuse and four counts of recklessness.
Sadly, incidents of children dying in hot cars are not rare in the U.S., especially as temperatures rise during summer. According to the National Council for Safety, around 37 children under the age of 15 suffer fatal heat strokes each year. The years 2018 and 2019 saw record highs with 53 deaths each year.
Recently, a tragic case involved a 9-year-old girl who lost her life after her mother broke a window to get into the car during an eight-hour work shift in Texas.
Another heartbreaking incident occurred last weekend in Alabama when a 3-year-old died after a child protective service worker accidentally left him in a hot car following a supervised visit with his father.
