Police in eastern Florida have gladly arrested a 33-year-old man for leaving his baby boy to die in a hot truck while he got a haircut and visited a bar.
The Volusia Sheriff’s Office posted video of Scott Allen Gardner being apprehended on Thursday on charges of aggravated manslaughter of a child and child neglect causing great bodily harm.
“Gardner is responsible for the death of his 18-month-old son Sebastian, who was left helpless in a hot truck for more than three hours on the afternoon of Friday, June 6, while Gardner got a haircut and then went drinking inside Hanky Panky’s Lounge,” authorities wrote on social media.
Cops said the baby’s body temperature was estimated to have reached 111 degrees by the time he died. The same police officer who tried reviving Sebastian was the one who handcuffed Gardner when he was arrested at his mother’s home in Ormond Beach.
Volusia County Sheriff Michael Chitwood didn’t mince words Friday at a press conference announcing the suspect’s apprehension.
“This father is a human piece of garbage and he’s a lying sack of s–t,” Chitwood told reporters.
Police allege the suspect got a haircut at 11:30 a.m. on the day of his son’s death, then drank beer and took shots from noon until 2:40 p.m. while the infant baked outside in the parking lot. A short time later, Gardener called 911 to say his son wasn’t breathing.
Police claim Gardner lied to investigators and behaved poorly toward hospital staff who tried helping Sebastian, before returning to Hanky Panky’s Lounge after learning the child was dead. According to cops, the “Father of the Year” continued drinking there until midnight.
Chitwood said he hopes Gardner is haunted by his son’s memory for the rest of his days.
