Crime & Safety
False Report Triggers Desperate Search for Toddler in Garbage Truck
A toddler is safe, and the child's father is in police custody after Orange County firefighters spent an hour sifting through trash.
Orange County firefighters spent more than an hour sifting through a mountain of trash from a garbage truck based on a father’s false report that his 4-year-old had fallen into a dumpster only to be carried off by the truck.
The father is now in police custody.
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The man flagged down the truck at about 1:30 p.m. in the 11000 Block West First street in Santa Ana, said Orange County Fire Authority Capt. Larry Kurtz.
“A father claimed that his 4-year-old was playing around a dumpster and subsequently fell in and was lifted by the trash truck,” said Kurtz.
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“OCFA opened it up sifted through the contents, but found nothing. We also backtraced the truck’s route and also found nothing,” Kurtz said. “It turns out the kid is with the mother.”
Santa Ana Police have taken the father into custody for questioning.
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