PHOENIX — A southern Arizona father who was convicted of murder after his 2-year-old daughter was left to die in a hot car in 2024 was found dead in Phoenix Wednesday morning, according to authorities.

Christopher Scholtes, 38, was found dead just after 5 a.m. in a neighborhood near Third Street and Northern Avenue, according to the Phoenix Police Department.

The department did not release any information about how Scholtes died. He was listed as dead on the Maricopa County Medical Examiner’s website.

Last month, Scholtes had agreed to plead guilty to second-degree murder in the case and was scheduled to appear in court this morning to be taken into custody, but failed to appear, according to ABC15.

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