The father of a 5-year-old Arizona boy who died in a hot car during a family party pointed to his teenage son when police asked how the child was left behind, according to authorities.
Mihail Sabo, 50, told investigators he had asked his 14-year-old son to remove Theo Sabo from the vehicle after the family returned to their Peoria home around 1 p.m. Sunday, following a baptism at their church. The teen, however, told police he was never given that instruction.
Temperatures in Peoria reached 106 degrees that afternoon while the Sabos hosted roughly 50 friends and relatives. More than two-and-a-half hours passed before anyone realized Theo was missing. The boy was found unresponsive in the vehicle and was rushed to a hospital after CPR was administered, but he was pronounced dead.
Mihail and his wife Anca Sabo, 45, were each charged with negligent homicide and child abuse. They appeared separately before Maricopa County Superior Court on Monday, where Anca was visibly distraught and her husband kept his head down and remained largely silent.
“This was a, I can’t overstress this, a tragedy,” the couple’s defense attorney Leah Dodd told the court during Anca’s hearing.
Dodd argued that the circumstances did not warrant criminal charges. “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,” she said, while Anca clutched her chest and wept.
The attorney continued that Theo “was sleeping, and there was a lot going on, but this does not deviate from what a normal person would do in this situation.”
Maricopa County Attorney Brooke Gaunt countered that “the child was in the car for more than two and a half hours and the parents were not aware of his location during that whole time.”
Dodd maintained that both parents acted appropriately once Theo was discovered. “She called 911, she administered life-saving efforts, she answered all questions of detectives. This is not someone who is running away,” she argued. “Everything that she and her husband did upon finding the child in the vehicle was standard care.”
At one point during the proceedings, Anca broke down and appealed directly to the judge. “I want to see my kids. Please let me see my kids,” she wailed.
Mihail appeared disheveled during his own hearing, which followed immediately after his wife’s, and showed little emotion while hanging his head low for much of the appearance. The couple, married nearly 20 years and Arizona residents since 2011, were ruled as co-defendants in separate matters.
Each was given $150,000 bond and barred from contacting each other. They were granted supervised visitation with their four surviving children, ages 18, 15, 14, and 9.
An online fundraiser established for the family mourned the loss. “Theo was deeply loved, and his precious life will never be forgotten,” the page stated. “Thank you for loving, praying for, and supporting the Sabo family as they walk through this unimaginable loss.”
The Maricopa County Attorney’s Office declined to comment on the ongoing cases.
Mihail and Anca Sabo are scheduled to return to court in Maricopa County.