A five-year-old boy died in the US on Wednesday after his foster mother left him in a hot car for seven hours in the scorching heat, according to police officials. The child was trapped in 89 degrees Fahrenheit (31 degrees Celsius) heat, marking the 10th hot car accident in the country, according to a report. New York Post,
Juanita Pinon, 40, is accused of leaving her foster son Dionisio Perez inside a burning SUV in the parking lot outside the beauty salon where she worked in Omaha, Nebraska, resulting in a tragic incident. According to prosecutors, Ms. Pinon, who has a criminal history dating back to 2016, parked her car and then went to work. However, it is unclear whether Perez’s death was the result of an accident or deliberate action.
Dionisio was pronounced dead at a nearby hospital after his body temperature rose to 105 degrees. The woman, who reportedly cared for five other children, was taken into custody and charged with negligent child abuse resulting in death. Notably, she could face up to 20 years in prison if convicted.
His bond was set at $2 million, the local NBC affiliate reported. Pinon was previously convicted of theft by deception in 2016 after swindling $12,000 from non-English speaking tenants. According to the report, state government officials told the boy’s biological father, Pablo Lopez, and stepmother, Jenny, that despite their efforts to gain custody of their son, he was in capable hands.
The five-year-old’s twin sister, who turned five in June, is also in Lopez’s custody, according to a GoFundMe page that was created to raise money for a lawyer and to “get her sister home safely.” “The twins were placed in foster care despite their father and stepmother’s efforts to bring the twins home. Their financial situation limited them greatly. The person who was supposed to care for them in foster care had a criminal history,” the GoFundMe page said.
It added: “Dionisio’s young life was cut short in the most horrific way possible. The world has lost such a bright, beautiful, young life too soon.”
