Dad Locks Son, 4, In Car While On Job Interview: Sheriff

PINELLAS COUNTY, FL – A 30-year-old father, who allegedly locked his son in a vehicle while attending a job interview, was arrested Thursday night on a child-neglect charge, according to the Pinellas County Sheriff's Office.

Deputies said Joshua R. O'Connor on Wednesday at 9:30 a.m. left his 4-year-old child unattended in a vehicle for more than 30 minutes in a parking lot while he interviewed for a job with an insurance company on the 1100 block of Belcher Road in Dunedin.

The child's mother called law enforcement saying she phoned the boy's father on his cell on Wednesday morning when the 4-year-old answered and reportedly told her he was alone in the locked car, with the engine running and the air conditioning on, while his dad was inside a business, deputies said.

The victim's mother said she stayed on the phone with the child for more than 30 minutes until O'Conner's cell phone battery died, the agency said.

The child was uninjured and, hours later, was returned to his mother, deputies said.

Investigators said they confirmed O'Connor had attended a job interview at the Belcher Road business.

Deputies arrested the suspect at about 10:14 p.m. Thursday at his Tarpon Springs residence. O'Connor was transported to the Pinellas County Jail without incident and charged with one count of neglect of a child as the investigation continues, officials said.

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--Image via Pinellas County Sheriff's Office