Mother Leaves 19 month-old Baby in Vehicle to Shop

Mother leaves 19 month-old baby in a Vehicle while she shops at the Target in Pinellas Park

July 15, 2014

On Monday, July 15, 2014 at 4:50pm, officers responded to Target, 7150 US Highway 19 N, in reference to a small child locked in a running vehicle.  Upon arrival, officers were informed by a certified paramedic that a 19-month-old child was left locked in a running sedan with the air conditioning circulating on low.

The child was observed crying in the vehicle and it was determined that the mother, 35 year-old Vita Abramenkova of Clearwater, was inside the store for 40 minutes, and had no way of keeping track of the child or the vehicle.  Abramenkova admitted to this offense, and was subsequently arrested on the charge of Child Neglect. The charges were determined based on the totality of the circumstances to include the time of day, the outside temperature, the age of the child and the incident location. The child was released to her father, and Abramenkova was transported to the Pinellas County Jail on a Felony Child Neglect charge.

Abramenkova was determined to have been inside Target for 40 minutes and explained to officers that her daughter was asleep when she arrived at Target and she didn’t want to wake her up. The ground temperature during the incident was 92 degrees and with the humidity, it was 101.

Video provided by Pinellas Park Police Department

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