A 3-year-old child found walking barefoot alone along a busy Tampa roadway Friday night led deputies to a nearby home, where they discovered four other young children left without an adult and a kitchen stove smoking, authorities said.
The incident began shortly after 8:30 p.m. Oct. 2 near North 42nd Street and Hellenic Drive. A passerby noticed the toddler walking along the road without shoes and stopped to make sure the child was safe before contacting law enforcement.
Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office deputies responded and began trying to locate the child’s home. Their search brought them to a nearby residence in the University area, where the front door was open.
Inside, deputies found four additional children alone. According to investigators, the kitchen stove had been left on and was producing smoke. The youngest children were also found wearing soiled diapers, and there was no parent or caregiver inside the home at the time.
The discovery prompted deputies to investigate who had been responsible for the children.
Investigators determined that the children’s mother was at work and that their father, 41-year-old Glenn Jones, had been left in charge of the five children.
Jones returned to the residence while deputies were investigating and was arrested. He faces five counts of child neglect, one involving each of the children.
The case began with a single child being spotted outside, but the discovery inside the home revealed that all five children had been without proper adult supervision. The open door and smoking stove also created additional safety concerns while the children were alone.
Jones was booked into the Hillsborough County Jail and remains held on a $25,000 bond. Authorities have not said how long the children were left without supervision or where Jones had gone before returning home.
The children were secured by deputies during the investigation. Further details about the case and Jones’ next court appearance had not been publicly listed in the latest available information.
