A Las Vegas dad was arrested after he refused to break the window of his new car to save his dying toddler, authorities said.
Sidney Deal, 27, flagged down officers after he left his 1-year-old daughter, Sayah Deal, in a hot car Monday afternoon with the keys inside, the Las Vegas Sun reported.
The officers offered to break the window, call a tow truck or get a locksmith, but Deal declined and asked to call his brother, police said.
After several minutes, the officers smashed the window and pulled out the unresponsive girl, who died at the scene, police said.
The cause of death is pending, but authorities believe she had been trapped in the car for more than an hour.
Detectives interviewed Deal’s brother, who said he received a call from him saying he accidentally locked Sayah in the car, which he claimed had the air conditioning running, news station KVVU reported.
Deal’s brother told police he was confused by the call and quickly headed to his home.
When he got there, the brother immediately wrapped his shirt around his hand and offered to punch out the window, authorities said.
But Deal stopped him and claimed he didn’t have enough money to fix a broken window, the outlets reported. He instead dispatched his brother to call their mom to have her insurance company send a locksmith.
Deal’s girlfriend also told police she called the insurance company for him, but he told her to hang up when he didn’t agree with the price quoted for a tow truck, the Las Vegas Sun reported.
He was booked into the Clark County Detention Center on one count of child abuse or neglect causing substantial bodily harm, the outlet reported. He is being held on $20,000 bond.
