A man was arrested on suspicion of child cruelty on Saturday after leaving his 5-year-old son in a vehicle in 90-degree weather, according to law enforcement officials.
Santa Clarita Valley Sheriff’s Station deputies responded to the 25600 block of The Old Road in Stevenson Ranch after reports of a young boy left in an unoccupied parked vehicle, according to Deputy Natalie Arriaga, spokeswoman for the station.
Temperatures rose to approximately 99° on Saturday, according to the National Weather Service.
A concerned citizen removed the boy from the vehicle and waited for law enforcement personnel to arrive at the scene, wrote Arriaga in an email. Upon arrival, deputies entered a Marshalls and made an announcement for the vehicle owner to identify themselves, she added.
The suspect identified himself to deputies and he was arrested on suspicion of child cruelty.
Sources familiar with the case said the boy was heard saying, “They left me in the car and it was hot.”
The child was later determined to be 5 years old, and he was transported to a nearby hospital for further medical evaluation.
According to law enforcement officials, the case will be filed in the San Fernando Valley Superior Court as a possible felony child abuse case.
The man was booked into the SCV Sheriff’s Station and remains in custody as of Monday afternoon. His bail was set at $100,000.
