Father Chases Tow Truck as 4-Year-Old Falls Out of Car During Alleged Illegal Tow in Florida

A Florida tow truck driver is facing a criminal charge after allegedly towing a car he claimed was “illegally parked,” despite a 4-year-old girl being inside. Surveillance footage reportedly shows the child’s father chasing the tow truck and shouting that his daughter was in the vehicle before she opened a door and “fell into the roadway,” according to police.

Sergio Jesus Suarez, charged with child neglect, allegedly “initiated the tow and drove away without exiting the vehicle or checking the towed vehicle for occupants,” the arrest report obtained by Law&Crime states. The report adds that the father was running toward the truck, yelling, and banging on the driver’s window to alert him that a child was inside.

The girl’s father told police he had been inside the Bistro Creole restaurant in Sunrise for “approximately” two minutes when he saw his Honda Accord being towed. Suarez reportedly claimed his “spotter” never mentioned a child was inside the vehicle.

According to the report, “[The father] explained that the tow truck had already lifted his vehicle when he reached it. He ran to the driver’s side window, banged on the window, and yelled multiple times that his daughter was inside the vehicle. Despite this, the tow truck driver accelerated and left the parking lot with the child still inside.” The father then allegedly chased Suarez through a plaza and onto West Oakland Park Boulevard, continuing to warn him. He said he saw his daughter “fall out of the vehicle onto the roadway.” The child was hospitalized with injuries to both arms and her right calf.

The report cites a witness who corroborated the father’s account, saying, “She heard yelling and observed a tow truck pulling a black sedan while [the father] chased the truck, yelling repeatedly. She saw the rear driver-side door open and a child fall out of the vehicle. She stated the tow truck was traveling at a high rate of speed at the time and continued driving eastbound after the child fell into the roadway.”

Police say Suarez’s failure to inspect the vehicle before towing, combined with his decision to continue driving despite being alerted that a child was inside, created a “foreseeable and substantial risk of serious bodily harm or death.” The arrest report states, “His actions constituted culpable negligence and demonstrated a reckless disregard for the safety of a minor, directly resulting in injury to the child.”

Suarez appeared at a bond hearing Monday night, during which Broward County Judge Corey Friedman criticized his alleged behavior. “This is one that stuck out to me this morning,” the judge said, noting that Suarez admitted he did not look at the vehicle, a claim supported by surveillance footage.

Suarez’s attorney told the court that his client checked the father’s Honda three times before towing and did not see a child inside. Suarez was released on bond Monday, and his next court date has not been scheduled.

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