HARRIS COUNTY, Texas — An autopsy is underway after a 1-year-old girl was found dead in a family’s vehicle in the Alief area on Thursday, deputies said.
Harris County Medical Examiner's Office identified the child as 1-year-old Chimananda Mbakigwe.
Deputies with the Harris County Sheriff’s Office said a mother went to drop off her children at their daycare around 8:30 a.m. She dropped off two of her kids but left with the 1-year-old girl still in the vehicle.
After the daycare, the mother went home, worked out and switched cars — and at about 6 p.m. went to pick up the children from the daycare. That's when she apparently realized the 1-year-old was never dropped off.
The mom and one of the daycare workers went back to the house, on Barnes Ridge, where they found the baby girl inside the family’s other car, dead on the floor. According to investigators, there were only two car seats in the vehicle.
HCSO stated Friday morning that, according to the mother, the 1-year-old was not initially dropped off at the daycare so the mother could run some errands with her. She was then going to go back and drop off the youngest child, but that apparently did not happen.
It’s believed the child was in the vehicle for 9 to 10 hours before she was found. Investigators said temperatures in the vehicle would have soared to at least 120 degrees.
It was an emotional scene outside the home where the investigators looked over and photographed the vehicle. Family members could be seen crying along with shaken neighbors.
Investigators said they questioned the mother, but there was also a language barrier that made it difficult to get the full story. Currently, no charges have been filed as the investigation continues.