- A Nigerian woman in Texas, identified as Gbemisola Akayinode, was arrested for the death of her 9 year old daughter who was left in a hot car for several hours.
- The Harris County Sheriff’s Office confirmed that the child, Oluwasikemi Akayinode, died from hyperthermia.
- Court documents revealed that Gbemisola allegedly left her daughter in the car while she went to work.
- She has now been charged with felony murder and booked into the Harris County Jail.
A 36 year old Nigerian woman in Texas, Gbemisola Akayinode, has been arrested and charged with felony murder after her 9 year old daughter, Oluwasikemi, tragically died from hyperthermia inside a locked car on a scorching day. The Harris County Sheriff’s Office confirmed the arrest on Thursday, saying the child’s death was ruled a homicide by the county’s Institute of Forensic Sciences.
Sheriff Ed Gonzalez, in a post on X (formerly Twitter), said Akayinode was taken into custody by the Harris County Homicide Detectives and the Violent Criminal Apprehension Team (VCAT). According to reports, the incident happened on July 1, when detectives responded to a call at an industrial complex on Mayo Shell Road in Galena Park, near Houston. The girl was found inside a vehicle and later pronounced dead at LBJ Hospital.
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Court documents obtained by ABC News revealed that Gbemisola had gone to work around 5:45 a.m leaving her daughter inside the car with food, a rechargeable fan, ice cubes, and water. The mother allegedly gave her daughter melatonin to sleep and lowered the back windows halfway before going to work. When she returned around 1:53 p.m, she found her daughter unresponsive and blue, prompting her to scream for help.
Further investigation showed that Gbemisola had taken her daughter to work with her multiple times in the past, claiming she could not afford day care until her next paycheck. However, investigators discovered that her foreman had already been covering the cost of day care for her.
According to KHOU11, Akayinode initially blamed the death on ADHD medication but later admitted to giving the child melatonin twice; the night before and the morning of the incident. Sheriff Gonzalez also revealed that a front window shade had been placed on the car, making it difficult for people to see inside.
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Emergency responders performed CPR before rushing Oluwasikemi to the Harris Health Lyndon B. Johnson Hospital, where she was declared dead. The medical examiner ruled the death a homicide due to hyperthermia.
Reports noted that the tragic case was one of four child deaths linked to hot cars in Texas within the first two weeks of July. In separate incidents, two children died after sneaking into a vehicle while their mother slept, and another baby lost their life after being intentionally left in a car by their mother
