Police said confusion over who was supposed to bring the boy inside may have preceded his death after a family baptism celebration.
PEORIA, Ariz. — The parents of a 5-year-old Arizona boy were arrested after their son was found unresponsive inside the family’s vehicle Sept. 13 and later died at a hospital, authorities said.
Peoria police identified the parents as Mihail Sabo and Anca Sabo. Police arrested them on suspicion of negligent homicide and child abuse after detectives interviewed them following the boy’s death. Authorities said an apparent miscommunication among family members over who was supposed to remove the child from the vehicle was part of the investigation. The allegations do not establish guilt, and the circumstances surrounding the death remain under investigation.
The family returned to its Peoria home at about 1 p.m. after attending church for the baptism of another child, according to police accounts reported by Arizona news organizations. At about 3:46 p.m., family members realized the 5-year-old was missing and began searching for him. His mother found him unresponsive inside the vehicle. Family members removed the boy and began CPR before police and fire crews arrived. He was taken to a hospital, where he was pronounced dead.
Peoria police Officer William Kennedy said investigators were examining an apparent breakdown in communication about who was responsible for getting the child out of the vehicle. Prosecutors said during the parents’ initial court proceedings that Anca Sabo had asked her husband to retrieve their son while she prepared for a gathering at the home. The defense said Mihail Sabo then asked one of the family’s teenage children to bring the 5-year-old inside. The teenager later said he did not remember receiving that request.
The precise length of time the child spent inside the vehicle has varied in early accounts. The family returned home around 1 p.m. and began looking for him shortly before 4 p.m., according to police. Some reports described the period as more than two and a half hours. Police had not publicly established an exact duration in all accounts reviewed. Temperatures in the Peoria area exceeded 100 degrees that afternoon, according to National Weather Service data cited by The Arizona Republic. Police said the death was being investigated as heat-related, while the medical examiner’s official cause and manner of death were still pending in the initial reporting.
The child was publicly identified as Theo Sabo by a fundraiser for the family, although Peoria police did not publicly identify him by name. The fundraiser described the boy as deeply loved and was organized to help the family with funeral and other immediate expenses. Authorities have released few additional details about the child as the investigation continues.
During initial court proceedings, an attorney representing the parents described the death as a tragic accident and disputed whether the circumstances justified the criminal allegations. The defense pointed to the parents’ actions after the boy was discovered, including efforts to revive him, calling emergency services and cooperating with investigators. Prosecutors, meanwhile, cited the period during which the parents did not know where the child was as they argued for restrictions and bond conditions.
A judge set a $150,000 secured appearance bond for each parent after prosecutors sought a higher amount. The judge also ordered Mihail and Anca Sabo not to have contact with each other. They were permitted supervised contact with their other children under conditions established by the court. Their arrest records were reported as sealed, limiting the amount of information publicly available about the evidence underlying the allegations.
The Maricopa County Attorney’s Office had received a case submission for review after the arrests, according to reporting shortly after the boy’s death. At that stage, the office said no charging decision had been made. That distinction means the offenses associated with the arrests should not be treated as a final determination of what charges prosecutors may pursue. Police continued investigating the sequence of events, including the family’s communications after returning from the baptism celebration.
The case remained under investigation as authorities worked to determine the circumstances surrounding the boy’s death. An official medical determination and additional details from the investigation had not been publicly released in the reports reviewed. Mihail and Anca Sabo are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty in court.
Author note: Last updated September 27, 2026.