Police say an Allegheny Township man left a 5-year-old and a 6-month-old baby in a hot car for nearly 40 minutes Tuesday while he got a massage in Springdale.
Springdale Police charged Jerry Rempuszewski, 32, with leaving an unattended child in a motor vehicle, endangering the welfare of children and recklessly endangering another person.
Officers found the children in the parking lot of Glen’s Frozen Custard on Pittsburgh Street in a sedan with the windows cracked about 3 inches, according to a criminal complaint filed against Rempuszewski.
The 5-year-old boy was conscious and awake, police said, but the 6-month-old girl was extremely red and sweating profusely.
While on scene, police observed Rempuszewski exit Golden Wellness Body Work Massage, a massage parlor across the street, the complaint said.
Rempuszewski initially told police he was getting the children ice cream, but surveillance footage showed he had never approached Glen’s, according to the complaint.
Instead, police said, he left the children alone in the car with the engine off for about 36 minutes.
Staff at the massage parlor told police Rempuszewski did not have an appointment and asked for a 30-minute massage, the complaint said.
At the time, the heat index was 87 degrees, the complaint said. Police said they believe the interior of the car was over 100 degrees. Both children were taken by ambulance to Children’s Hospital in Pittsburgh, the complaint said.
Rempuszewski’s preliminary hearing is set for 9 a.m. June 24 before District Judge Michael Girardi.