An Arizona father has been alleged to have played his PlayStation while knowingly leaving his two-year-old daughter in a hot car to die.
Christopher Scholtes, 37, was arrested Friday and charged with second-degree murder and child abuse in Parker’s death. The game console was seized during a search of his home in Marana.
Scholtes told police she left her daughter in the car seat inside the vehicle because she didn’t want to wake her, according to a criminal complaint obtained by DailyMail.com.
He said he left her in the family’s Acura for about 30 minutes after arriving home at 2:30 p.m., it is alleged.
But new evidence presented by prosecutors suggests the girl was in the car for three hours. The outside temperature was 49C and the car was parked in direct sunlight.
Christopher Scholtes, 37, was arrested Friday and charged with second-degree murder and child abuse in Parker’s death. He is seen with Parker, his two older sisters and his wife Erika.
Scholtes’ doctor’s wife, Erika, came home around 4 p.m., asked where Parker was and found her dead in the car, it is alleged.
As Parker was being taken to the hospital, Scholtes’ wife, Erika Scholtes, texted him, saying, “I told you to stop leaving them in the car, how many times have I told you that?”
He then added: “We have lost her, she was perfect.”
Scholtes replied: “Honey, I’m sorry! How could I do this? I killed our baby, this can’t be real.”
Scholtes’ two other children, ages nine and five, told police that Scholtes had regularly left the three siblings alone in the vehicle.
And Scholtes’ two other children, ages nine and five, told police that Scholtes had regularly left the three siblings alone in the vehicle.
The children reportedly added that Scholtes “was distracted playing his game and putting away his food” on Friday when Parker died in the car.
The father of three told police he left the Acura’s air conditioning on, but knew it would automatically shut off after about 30 minutes based on previous experience.
Although he told police he had arrived home with Parker around 2:30 p.m., nearby surveillance footage showed his vehicle arriving at the home around 12:53 p.m.
It wasn’t until shortly after 4 p.m. when Scholetes’ wife arrived home and asked where Parker was, that the boy was found in the car.
A 911 call was placed at 4:16 p.m., when the reported temperature was 109 degrees.
A PlayStation and other electronic devices were confiscated by authorities, KPTV reported.
On Monday, Erika Scholtes, an anesthesiologist, called her daughter’s death a “huge mistake” and begged a Tucson judge to reconsider holding her husband until his next hearing in August.
A 911 call was made at 4:16 p.m., when the temperature was reported to be 109 degrees. Parker is pictured
Parker was left in this blue Honda Acura SUV that was seen behind police tape earlier that day. Conditions of his release include that he stay away from alcohol or illegal drugs, as well as any firearms.
Erika Scholtes, 35, works as an anesthesiologist at the same hospital where her daughter was rushed on Tuesday. On Friday, hours after her arrest, she managed to have her husband temporarily released. He is charged with murder.
The judge upheld the doctor’s request and agreed to release the suspect until his next hearing next month so he can “begin the grieving process” with his family.
“I’m just asking if they can allow him to come home with us so we can all begin the grieving process,” Erika, 35, said during a remote appearance at her husband’s scheduled hearing.
She explained that it would be “so that he can bury our daughter with us next week, and (so) we can go through this poor process together as a family.”
Scholtes told police that when she got home, Parker (pictured next to her) was asleep in the backseat and he didn’t want to wake her up, which made him opt to leave her in the car despite the extreme heat.
“This was a huge mistake and I don’t think it represents him,” the mother of two continued.
“I just want the girls to see their father so I don’t have to tell them tonight that they’re going to suffer another loss.”
The defense went on to point out that Scholtes had no criminal record other than a drunk driving charge from 15 years ago.