A Florida mother was arrested Monday for leaving her 19-month-old daughter alone inside her car while she went shopping, the Tampa Bay Times reported.
Vita Abramenkova left her daughter inside the locked, running vehicle for at least 40 minutes while she went shopping at a Target in Pinellas Park, according police. The 35-year-old mother told police she did not want to wake her sleeping baby and that the air conditioner was on low.
The temperature outside the car at the time was 92 degrees, police said according to Bay News 9.
A paramedic who just happened to walk by the car in the parking lot along U.S. Highway 19 N. saw the unsupervised child and called the cops at around 5 p.m., according to the Tampa Bay Times.
Abramenkova, of Clearwater, was arrested and charged with child neglect. She was released Tuesday from the Pinellas County Jail after posting $2,000 bail. It is not yet clear if she has an attorney. The baby is now staying with her father.
Abramenkova's arrest is the latest in a string of incidents involving parents leaving their children inside locked vehicles in sweltering temperatures.
A 3-year-old boy died from a heatstroke days after being trapped inside a hot car in front of his South Carolina home in early July. Reports say the toddler's family was inside the home and did not know the boy left the house.
A Georgia father is currently facing felony murder charges for leaving his 1-year-old son inside a sweltering SUV for hours while he went to his job at Home Depot last month. Justin Ross Harris has pleaded not guilty to the charges.
