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crime1d ago
Kids ask 'will we freeze' as dad accused of abandoning them on mountain
Dailystar.co.uk and 1 more
- A Utah father, Micah Smith, is charged with multiple felony counts related to allegedly torturing and abusing his three children after leaving them on a mountain during dangerous weather.
- The three children, ages two, four, and eight, were abandoned on Broads Fork Trail in Big Cottonwood Canyon as severe weather loomed after the hike began on October 11.
- Rescuers found the two younger children in critical condition and the older child distressed, prompting on-scene care and CPR during the descent.
- Investigators say Smith told rescuers he was stressed and claimed one child was dead, a claim reflected in the indictment and rescue reports.
- The hike was described as strenuous for a family: a five-mile round trip with significant elevation, not appropriate for young children.
- Rescue teams encountered Smith on the trail as storms worsened, with weather turning misty, foggy, and wet, while he claimed one child was dead.
- During the descent, a daughter asked, 'Are we going to freeze to death, Daddy?', capturing the children’s fear.
- The descent reportedly took place around 8 p.m., as weather shifted to mist, fog, rain, and hail.
- Salt Lake County prosecutors say the hike was not suitable for children, and the case is being pursued as serious felonies.
- Smith remains detained without bail as prosecutors review charges and evidence from the 24-hour ordeal.
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