A 13-month-old boy in Michigan was found alive after authorities say his father allegedly left him inside a locked car that was later towed and impounded for nearly two days, as reported by The New York Post.

Police discovered the toddler on Feb. 28 at a tow yard in Eastpointe after the child’s mother reported him missing earlier that day to Detroit police, according to WXYZ.

Officers located the boy crying inside the vehicle and pinned between a car seat and the passenger door.

Authorities believe the child had been inside the vehicle for roughly 36 hours.

Investigators said the boy’s father, Orlander Murnell Linson Jr., allegedly parked the vehicle on the restricted side of a street and blocked a resident’s driveway on the evening of Feb. 26. The car was subsequently towed the following day.

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According to Harper Woods Police Chief Jason Hammerle, the officer who impounded the vehicle performed a routine visual inspection before the car was towed, but did not notice the child inside.

The toddler’s injuries were not immediately known. He was transported to a hospital, where he was reported to be in stable condition. Authorities also said the child was taken into custody by Child Protective Services.

Linson has been charged with second-degree child abuse in connection with the incident.

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During his arraignment this week, Linson’s court-appointed attorney told the court that Linson works as a security guard for the pizza chain Little Caesars and is a father of five children.

“[Linson] realizes that this is just a bad decision made in a split second, so we’re hoping that he could have a personal bond so that he can adjudicate this case and get back to his family quickly,” the attorney said.

A judge declined to release Linson on a personal bond. Instead, the court ordered him held on a $100,000 bond.

Authorities also noted that Linson reportedly had 10 active warrants and did not have a primary address at the time of his arrest.

His next scheduled court appearance is March 11.

The case has drawn attention to questions about whether additional checks should have been performed before the vehicle was towed and stored.

Retired Detroit Assistant Police Chief Steve Dolunt told WXYZ that, in his view, the situation involved mistakes during the impound process.

“They couldn’t get into it right away. From what I’ve seen in the past, all tow yards have a Slim Jim or some way to get into cars.

Granted, the car wasn’t flagged – the officer thought it was just a routine impound. In this case, it was not,” Dolunt said.

“Fortunately, they got to it before the baby was deceased. So yeah, they dropped the ball,” he added.

Harper Woods Police Chief Hammerle defended the actions of the officer involved when asked about the department’s procedures for inspecting vehicles before towing them.

“We do not possess those types of tools,” Hammerle said when asked whether officers had equipment to access locked vehicles before impounding them.

“I’m satisfied that our officer followed policy in that incident. We cannot enter or damage locked vehicles, and he did a visual inspection from the outside – I’m satisfied with that,” the chief said.

Hammerle also credited a detective with helping locate the vehicle after the child’s mother reported the toddler missing.

According to the chief, the detective quickly connected the report with information that the mother’s boyfriend’s vehicle had been towed and began searching for it.

“That detective did an outstanding job by locating the car, considering it wasn’t quite registered to the suspect yet in this case,” Hammerle said.

Authorities say the discovery likely prevented a tragic outcome.

NEW: Father charged after a 13-month-old boy was found alive after nearly two days trapped inside a locked, impounded car

Orlander Linson Jr. is charged with second-degree child abuse. He is accused of leaving his toddler son inside a vehicle in Harper Woods, Michigan The child… pic.twitter.com/00MI2W6Py7 — Unlimited L's (@unlimited_ls) March 5, 2026

The investigation into the circumstances surrounding the incident remains ongoing as Linson prepares for his next court hearing.

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