As the case moved into court, an emotional plea from the boy’s mother, strict release conditions, and a fast-growing wave of community support revealed just how far the tragedy had rippled. But the most haunting details were still buried in the timeline of those final hours.A family returned home from what should have been a meaningful day at church, unaware that within hours, their lives would be changed forever. But as investigators began piecing together what happened, two accounts of one crucial moment did not match.The devastating case unfolded in Peoria, Arizona, on September 13, 2026, after a family came home from the baptism of another child.What authorities say happened between their arrival and the frantic search that followed has now become a central part of the investigation.

According to Fox 10 Phoenix, the family arrived back at their home at approximately 1 p.m. after attending the baptism. For more than two hours afterward, however, five-year-old Theo’s whereabouts were apparently unknown.Shortly after 3:45 p.m., his family realized he was missing and began searching for him. It was his mother who ultimately found the little boy. Theo was unresponsive inside a vehicle at the family’s home near 67th Avenue and Happy Valley Road.Family members pulled him from the car and began CPR. By then, according to authorities, he had been inside the vehicle for approximately two and a half hours. Peoria Fire personnel transported the five-year-old to a nearby hospital, where he was pronounced dead.The heartbreaking discovery alone was enough to leave a family devastated. But court documents would soon reveal another detail that added a difficult new question to the investigation.A fundraiser created in Theo’s memory described him as a deeply loved little boy whose life “will never be forgotten.” The campaign was launched to help his family with funeral expenses, meals, time away from work, and other immediate needs. | Source: GoFundMe/Support for the Sabo Family’s Loss

A fundraiser created in Theo’s memory described him as a deeply loved little boy whose life “will never be forgotten.” The campaign was launched to help his family with funeral expenses, meals, time away from work, and other immediate needs. | Source: GoFundMe/Support for the Sabo Family’s LossAccording to the court documents cited in the report, Theo’s father, Mihail Sabo, told investigators that when the family first arrived home, he had asked his 14-year-old son to get the five-year-old out of the vehicle. The teenager, however, reportedly gave police a different version of events.He told investigators that his father never asked him to get Theo out of the car. That contradiction has emerged as one of the most significant details surrounding the case as investigators try to determine exactly how the little boy remained inside the vehicle for so long.

“It appears that it was either a miscommunication between who or which family member was supposed to get the child out of the car,” William Kennedy of the Peoria Police Department said.