JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – A 27-year-old woman was arrested and accused of child neglect after a child was found “distressed” inside a hot car while the mother shoplifted, according to the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office.
The Jacksonville Fire Rescue Department responded to the incident on Thursday morning at a Jacksonville Publix. An arrest report obtained by News4JAX said the child was found “breathing rapidly and sweating” while inside an unlocked Honda Pilot that was not running during 91-degree weather.
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The child was removed from the vehicle and given aid until they were medically cleared.
The woman, who was inside the store, returned to the vehicle to load the stolen merchandise into the trunk, but did not notice the child had been removed from the vehicle, JSO said.
She told JFRD that she was only in the store for a few minutes and returned to the car because she forgot her wallet, the report said.
The report said the woman was in the store for roughly 30 minutes, according to surveillance footage pulled by JSO. The footage also showed that she did not check out at a register before heading to her vehicle.
Police said she stole $234 worth of merchandise.
When the woman spoke with a JSO officer, she was apologetic, but the report said her time frame for being in the store continued to change.
She was charged with child neglect without great bodily harm and petit theft.