Two-year-old baby girl found dead in back of sweltering hot van after ‘distracted’ daycare workers FORGOT her after a day trip
Maliyah Jones, 22 months, and Aubrianna Loya, 2, were left alone in the sweltering van during a heatwave in Portales, New Mexico.
Mother and daughter Mary and Sandi had returned the children to their family-owned business Taylor Tots Day Care.
Sandi, 33, had taken six to a park in July 2017, while Mary, 64, remained with the others, reports the Albuquerque Journal.
Sandi took four of the kids inside, before allegedly becoming “distracted” and failing to return to the van for the girls.
The vulnerable pair were then trapped in the scorching car for more than an hour, say prosecutors.
“The worker was intending to go back and get (the girls), but she got distracted by something – she doesn’t know what – and then began to fill out some paperwork,” Deputy District Attorney Brian Stover told ABC7.
“They put the children down for naps and did not notice the two missing at the time,” he said.
“Later, they realised it and found the children and began to attempt lifesaving procedures and called 911.”
The children’s body temperatures were 42 degrees
By the time the little girls were discovered, they were not breathing and were suffering from extreme heat exposure, say cops.
“I can tell you it was 32 degrees on Tuesday during the heat of the day,” District Attorney Andrea Reeb said at the time.
“The children’s body temperatures were 42 degrees.”
Upon discovering the girls in their condition, the two women immediately called emergency services.
Aubrianna was flown to a Lubbock hospital in a critical condition and Maliyah later died.
The daycare owners were arrested on child abuse charges resulting in the death of a child, and child abuse causing great bodily harm.
On Wednesday, the pair appeared in a Roosevelt County courtroom for the first day of the trial.
Prosecutors presented the 911 call and body camera footage, which showed police finding Maliyah, who was dead, and attempting to revive Aubrianna.
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Five witnesses spoke at the trial, including the toddlers’ mothers, and three police officers who responded to the incident.
Both Sandi and Mary face jail time of up to 18 years if found guilty, with the trial expected to continue until February 7.
According to reports in the US, their lawyer Tye Harmon is to argueargue the incident was a tragic accident.
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