Foster mother charged in death of 5-year-old boy found in SUV at strip mall
OMAHA, Neb. (WOWT/Gray News) - Police have arrested the foster mother of a 5-year-old boy found dead in an SUV at a strip mall after he was allegedly left alone inside the vehicle for hours.
Omaha Police say 40-year-old Juanita was booked into the Douglas County Jail to face charges of child abuse by neglect resulting in death. She is due in court on Friday, WOWT reports.
Pinon is the foster mother of 5-year-old Dionicio Perez, who was found unresponsive in an SUV at a northwest Omaha strip mall just after 5 p.m. Wednesday. The boy was taken by ambulance to a hospital, where he was pronounced dead.
Pinon works at a nail salon in the strip mall. The owner of the building says she arrived at work sometime before noon.
Police say it appears Dionicio was left unattended in the SUV for an extended period of time. They speculated Thursday that heat was a factor in his death but said that would have to be confirmed by the autopsy. Wednesday’s high temperature was 89 degrees.
Dionicio was the youngest of six children, the oldest of whom is 19 years old, according to court records.
Two years ago, their biological mother told a Douglas County juvenile court judge that she no longer believed she could safely care for them. She signed over power of attorney for the three youngest kids to Pinon, a family friend.
WOWT checked Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services rules and regulations to be a foster parent in the state. Background checks are required. While the suspect has had some run-ins with the law, there was no documentation of anything serious enough to deem her ineligible to be a foster parent.
Pinon is currently being held on a $2 million bail.
Police are still seeking tips on the incident. Anyone with information that could help with the investigation is asked to contact Omaha Crime Stoppers at 402-444-STOP, on the P3 Tips mobile app or the Omaha Crime Stoppers website.
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