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Father left 5-year-old in car with ‘white powder’, loaded gun on 45-degree night to go to Valley bar

The incident happened near 51st Avenue and Camelback Road just before 1 a.m. on Saturday.

GLENDALE, Ariz. — A man has been arrested and is facing charges of abuse and endangerment after his 5-year-old son was found wandering in urine-soiled clothes at a restaurant near a busy Glendale roadway over the weekend.

According to court documents, the man, identified as Miguel Silva, Jr., 38, had left the boy in his car while he went to a bar in the same area as the restaurant.

The incident happened near 51st Avenue and Camelback Road just before 1 a.m. on Saturday.

Child found wandering

“The road in which the vehicle was parked next to is a very busy road with very heavy traffic,” court documents said.

The boy approached people in the area and asked for help finding his father. Police were contacted and responding officers were able to get the boy to tell them his father’s name.

The owners of the restaurant helped police figure out which car the boy had come from. Police then used the car’s registration to track down the father.

Silva identified

Court documents said the little boy was shown a picture of Silva and identified him to police as his father.

Police noted that the temperature when the child was found that night was 45 degrees. Additionally, the car the boy had been left in was cold when officers touched its hood. It appeared that the vehicle had been off for some time, officers noted.

“Officers looked inside of the vehicle the child was in and did not observe there to be any blankets or warm clothes for the child to use,” according to court documents.

The boy had gone to the bathroom on himself and his clothes were soiled with urine, police said in their report.

Silva arrested

Police located Silva inside the bar.

Arresting officers reported that Silva “was slurring his words and repeatedly telling officers ‘he was sorry,’” court documents said.

According to court documents, when police asked Silva if he knew where his son was, the man told them the boy was with his mother. When the mother was contacted, she told officers she had not seen her son since he went to school Friday morning.

Gun and 'white powder' in car

When police searched the car the boy had been left in, they found a loaded gun, a clear bag of white powder and three ammunition magazines, according to court documents.

Silva is facing charges of child abuse, emotional abuse and endangerment.

The boy was turned over to his mother, according to court documents.

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