Police say the boy was unaccounted for for more than two hours after his family returned home from a church baptism.
PEORIA, Ariz. — The parents of a 5-year-old boy who died after being found unresponsive in a family vehicle have been arrested as Peoria police investigate how the child remained in the car for more than two hours without his family realizing he was missing.
Mihail Sabo and Anca Sabo were arrested after the boy was discovered Sunday afternoon, Sept. 13, at a home in Peoria. Police recommended charges of negligent homicide and child abuse. The boy was removed from the vehicle by family members, who began CPR before emergency crews arrived. He was taken to a hospital and later pronounced dead.
Investigators said the family returned home at about 1 p.m. after attending the baptism of another child at church. Shortly after 3:45 p.m., relatives realized the 5-year-old was missing and began searching for him. His mother found him unresponsive inside the family vehicle, according to police.
The investigation has focused in part on what happened when the family first arrived home. The father told investigators that he asked his 14-year-old son to remove the younger boy from the vehicle, according to information presented in the case. The teenager told police that he did not remember his father asking him to do so.
William Kennedy of the Peoria Police Department said investigators believe there may have been a miscommunication over which family member was responsible for getting the child out of the vehicle. Prosecutors said during the parents’ initial court appearance that the boy had been inside the vehicle for more than two and a half hours while his parents were unaware of his location.
The parents appeared in court Monday, Sept. 14. A judge set a $150,000 secured appearance bond for each parent. They were ordered not to have contact with each other, while supervised contact with their other children was permitted.
A defense attorney described the child’s death as a tragedy and disputed the criminal allegations against the parents. The defense has said the family tried to save the child after finding him and cooperated with investigators. Those arguments will be weighed as the criminal case proceeds, and the arrests do not establish guilt.
Authorities had not publicly released a final medical determination on the boy’s cause of death as of Tuesday. Police also had not released the child’s name. The case remains under investigation, and investigators have said additional information could emerge as they review the circumstances surrounding the boy’s death.
Author note: Last updated September 15, 2026.