LAUDERDALE LAKES, Fla. – With heat indices hovering near 110 degrees, the father and aunt of a 3-month-old baby left the girl strapped into a car seat under the baking sun for more than a half hour while they went vehicle shopping in Lauderdale Lakes, Broward County deputies allege.
According to a report from the Broward Sheriff’s Office, John Polidor, 42, of Margate, and Rose Belony, 40, of Pompano Beach, with the baby girl in tow, went to the Enterprise Car Sales lot at 2200 N. State Road 7 at around 11:20 Monday morning.
Local 10 News’ Bridgette Matter spoke to Polidor on Tuesday night after he bonded out of jail.
He said he just forgot that his daughter was in the car.
“It was a mistake,” he said. “We totally forgot she was there.”
Wednesday noon report:
Deputies said they left the child in the car while inquiring about purchasing a vehicle; meanwhile, their vehicle was parked in the open, with the ignition off, the windows up and a 109-degree heat index outside.
According to the arrest report, Polidor took the baby inside after 32 minutes. A witness described the “lethargic” infant as “visibly not conscious,” with a “flush sun-burnt red” face, deputies said.
That led someone to try to call 911, but both Polidor and Belony told them that “they did not want 911 involved and they would take the child home,” the report states.
“Witnesses also called for the child’s milk bottle for fluids, to which the defendants stated they did not have it with them,” deputies wrote.
Despite the couple’s attempt to dissuade witnesses from calling for help, someone called 911 anyway, deputies said. Miraculously, she did not suffer any serious injuries.
In bond court proceedings Tuesday, Belony said the incident was a mistake. Both she and Polidor were given a $15,000 bond on a charge of child neglect without great bodily harm.