While one Ohio mother was vacationing on a Caribbean island, her 16-month-old toddler was at home in Ohio dying. Kristel Candelario, 31, has been charged with murder after she spent over a week on vacation, away from her child.
Candelario allegedly abandoned her daughter, leaving her home alone from June 8 to June 16, Cleveland officials claim. When Candelario returned home, she found her daughter Jailyn unresponsive.
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A cause of death has not been released.
The toddler was taken from Candelario’s residence to the Cuyahoga County Medical Examiner, according to Newsweek. The examiner found that Jailyn died on June 16.
A cause of death has not yet been released, but investigators say the girl was extremely dehydrated. Calendario was arrested at the scene. Suleyn Gonzalez, a neighbor, said the child usually stayed in the care of her grandmother.
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The child's grandmother usually watched her when her mother was away.
“[The baby’s] mom always wanted to go out and just left her with her grandma and all that,” Gonzalez said. Other neighbors said they would have gladly watched the child if Candelario had asked, WSAZ reported.
Candelario has been charged with a first-degree felony. Candelario, who called authorities when she came home, admitted that she went on vacation and had traveled to Puerto Rico and Detroit, according to the local ABC affiliate.
The child's Pack 'N' Play was loaded with soiled sheets.
Police said the girl's Pack 'N' Play “consisted of soiled blankets and a bottom liner saturated with urine and feces,” court records stated. Candelario is currently being held at the Cuyahoga County Jail in lieu of a $1 million bond.
She is set to appear in court again later this month.
She will be back in court for her pre-trial on June 28 at 8:30 a.m. She is the second Cleveland mother to be charged with murdering their child in the past two days.
A medical examiner will rule on the exact cause of Jailyn’s death at some point. Candelario’s case is expected to go to a grand jury, WKYC reported.
