Collier County mother arrested for Child Neglect

A mother in Collier County is accused of leaving her child in a hot car for as long as a half hour in a shopping plaza.

Collier County Sherriff’s Office arrested Annabela Temelkova for Child Neglect after she left her son in the back seat of a car with the front windows cracked and engine off.

A worker in the plaza called 911, and it helped save the child’s life.

According to witnesses, Temelkova parked in a parking spot while she took her older child into a European market in the plaza.

Temelkova told police she stopped to feed the oldest child who wanted bread. She said the baby had fallen asleep, so she decided to leave him in the car with the two front windows cracked and engine off.

A customer of CosmoProf came out to the parking lot and heard the child crying in the same car that had been parked next to her about 30 minutes prior. The customer ran back inside of the store panicking, telling the employees there was a child in the car.

While one employee went looking for the mom, the other called 911.

“Well it was almost 90 degrees yesterday,” Monica Hamilton said. “The baby was left in the car by himself. You could see the baby moving and like waving its hands and trying to get out, and only two windows were cracked in the front seat. And the baby was in the back, and he was screaming, and we had no idea where the mother was.”

Deputies said the baby was wearing multiple layers of warm clothing that were drenched in sweat, and his face was red and bloated from the heat.