Nigerian Mother Arrested for Felony Murder After 9-Year-Old Dies from Hot Car in Texas
Nigerian Mother Arrested for Felony Murder After 9-Year-Old Dies from Hot Car in Texas
A 36-year-old Nigerian woman, Gbemisola Akayinode, has been arrested and charged with felony murder following the death of her 9-year-old daughter, Oluwasikemi, who succumbed to hyperthermia after being left inside a car for several hours in intense heat in Texas.
Harris County Sheriff Ed Gonzalez announced the arrest via X (formerly Twitter) on October 17, confirming that the Harris County Institute of Forensic Sciences classified the child’s death as a homicide.
Gonzalez stated, “Arrest update: today, #HCSOTexas Homicide Detectives and our Violent Criminal Apprehension Team (VCAT) arrested Gbemisola G. Akayinode for the murder of her nine-year-old daughter, Oluwasikemi Akayinode. The Harris County Institute of Forensic Sciences ruled the death a homicide, as a result of hyperthermia. Gbemisola (11-17-88) is being charged with Felony Murder and is now in Harris County Jail.”
Initial reports from the sheriff’s office indicated that authorities responded to a call on July 1 at an industrial complex on Mayo Shell Road in Galena Park, near Houston, where they found a 9-year-old girl left unattended inside a vehicle. The child was transported to LBJ Hospital and was pronounced dead shortly after.
According to court documents reported by ABC News, Oluwasikemi died after being trapped in the car for over eight hours on a day when temperatures reached 99 degrees. The incident occurred while her mother was at work at a nearby manufacturing plant.
Gbemisola reportedly arrived at her job around 5:45 a.m., leaving her daughter in the vehicle with food, a rechargeable fan, ice cubes, and water. She lowered the back windows halfway and gave her daughter melatonin to help her sleep. When she returned at approximately 1:53 p.m. after her shift, she found Oluwasikemi unresponsive and blue, prompting her to scream for help.
Further court records revealed that Gbemisola had previously taken her daughter to work with her, including the day before the incident, because she lacked funds for daycare until her next paycheck. However, investigators found that her employer was actually paying for childcare.
KHOU11 reports that court documents also indicate Gbemisola blamed the girl’s death on prescription medication she was taking for ADHD, but she admitted to giving her daughter melatonin both the night before and that morning. Sheriff Gonzalez also noted that the mother left a shade up in the front window of the car, making it harder for passersby to see inside.
Rescue efforts included starting CPR on Oluwasikemi, who was then rushed to Harris Health Lyndon B. Johnson Hospital, where she was pronounced dead. The medical examiner classified her death as homicide due to hyperthermia.
Oluwasikemi’s death was among four child fatalities in Texas during the first two weeks of July involving hot cars. In one case reported in September, a mother claimed her two children died in a hot car while she slept after they managed to leave the house and enter the vehicle. In August, another mother was accused of intentionally leaving her 15-month-old in a hot car while she worked, resulting in the child’s death.
