A father in Healdsburg, California was arrested on suspicion of drowning his 4 year old daughter at a local church, according to reports from Fox News and local outlets.
Police said the man, identified as 42 year old Gerardo, showed up at the Healdsburg police station on Sunday night, November 20. He was reportedly outside the building yelling for help while holding his fully clothed, soaking wet daughter. Police said he and the family had been at St. John the Baptist Catholic Church before arriving at the station.
The little girl was taken to a hospital, where she was pronounced dead. An autopsy was scheduled to determine the cause of death, though investigators believe she drowned in a baptismal pool inside the sanctuary. Police said the church is routinely left unlocked and that the pool is at least a foot deep.
Healdsburg Police Chief Kevin Burke described the case as “a very complicated investigation,” and state Department of Justice crime scene investigators were called in to help evaluate the scene. No formal charge had been announced in the reports at the time, and a response from Gerardo had not been reported.
The church pastor released a statement saying a child had died and asking for prayers for the family and the parish community. He said more would be known when police finish the investigation.
An arrest on suspicion is not a conviction, and Baller Alert will not speculate beyond what police and the family’s community have shared. We are keeping the family in our thoughts.
