A mother in Cleveland, Ohio, has been charged with murder after police said she left her infant daughter alone for eight days while she went on vacation.
Officials said 31-year-old Kristel Candelario told them she went on vacation to Puerto Rico and Detroit from June 8 to June 16, all while leaving her 16-month-old daughter Jailyn alone and without care inside the house. She returned home last Friday to find her 16-month-old daughter unresponsive.
Child was 'Extremely Dehydrated'
Jailyn was later pronounced dead at the scene, and investigators noted she was "extremely dehydrated." Officials also observed Jailyn's play bin packed with "soiled blankets and a bottom liner, saturated with urine and feces."
Candelario was arrested two days later and appeared in court for arraignment Tuesday morning. She is currently being held in the Cuyahoga County Jail on a $1 million bond, with her next court date scheduled for June 28 at 8:30 a.m.
The Cuyahoga County Medical Examiner will rule on Jailyn's exact cause of death. Candelario's case is expected to eventually go to a grand jury.
Neighbors Said Candelario Always Left Child with Grandma
Local news outlet WOIO spoke with neighbors who said they would have gladly watched the child if they had been asked.
Neighbor Suleym Gonzalez said Candelario was not the typical caretaker of her daughter, and the baby was usually cared for by the grandmother. "Her (the baby's) mom always wanted to go out and just left her with her grandma and all that," she said.
