Instacart driver charged with leaving child in hot vehicle while shopping, Tavares police say
An Instacart shopper who left his infant in a hot car and went into the supermarket to shop has been arrested, Tavares police say.
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According to an arrest affidavit, at approximately 5:20 p.m. on Sunday, Keita Karanta Jones, 27, of Leesburg, parked his car and left his infant behind to shop in the Publix grocery store at SR 19 in Tavares.
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A witness who provided a statement to police said that when he pulled up at 5:30 p.m. and saw the unattended baby in the hot vehicle, he immediately checked to see if the female infant was breathing.
The witness then flagged down a Publix employee to call 911, according to authorities.
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When Tavares police and fire departments arrived a short time later and approached the vehicle, they noticed the infant was visibly sweating, clammy, and had a labored breathing pattern, according to the affidavit.
According to the affidavit, first responders were able to force the window down to gain entry.
Police said the Publix manager made an announcement for the owner of the vehicle to come to customer service. Jones rushed to the front of the store to respond to the announcement and was escorted out by authorities.
Police said Jones left the infant in the hot car unattended for about 45 minutes. He was transported to the Lake County jail and charged with child endangerment.
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