An Arizona man accused of playing video games and watching pornography while his 2-year-old daughter died in a sweltering car took his own life rather than turning himself in ahead of his sentencing.

Christopher Scholtes, 38, pleaded guilty last month to leaving his toddler unattended for at least three hours in July 2024, which led to the baby’s death. An autopsy showed her body temperature hit nearly 109 degrees.

Scholtes was due to surrender to authorities Wednesday morning, a little over two weeks before his sentencing on Nov. 21, but he dodged accountability, according to Pima County Attorney Laura Conover.

“We expected to be in court this morning because the father had accepted a plea agreement to second-degree murder , which could have carried as much as 30 years in prison

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