Bronx twins found dead.Photo:Kyle Mazza/TheNEWS2 via ZUMA/SplashNews
Kyle Mazza/TheNEWS2 via ZUMA/SplashNews
The5-year-old twins who were found deadin theirNew York City apartment after foaming at the mouthin what officials previously called a “medical tragedy” were smothered, an autopsy has revealed.
The children, who have not been publicly identified because of their age, were sick in the days leading up to their deaths and stayed home from school, according toWABCandWPIX.
The boy had been kept home since Nov. 30 because of vomiting and cold symptoms, Chief of Detectives Joseph Kenny said in December, theNew York Daily Newsreported. His sister was also vomiting and had an ear infection, he said.
She said she performed CPR until EMTs arrived. The children were pronounced dead at the scene.
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At a press conference after the deaths, NYPD Chief of Detectives Joseph Kenny said the situation “appears to be a medical tragedy" — but noted that autopsy reports are pending, theDaily Newsreported.
The mother was taken to a local hospital for emotional distress. The father, who was at work at the time, has been cooperating with authorities, say police.
Neither child appeared to have physical signs of trauma, and drugs were not found at the home, police said. Carbon monoxide poisoning did not appear to be a factor either.
The parents are immigrants from Ghana, WABC reports. The mother slept with the children in her bed, police said. The father is a home health attendant, the outlet reports.
“All reports were that mom was well-engaged with everything to do with the children,” Kenny said at the news conference, per theDaily News. “She was an active participant with their medical care [and] active participant in their schooling.”
Police are continuing to investigate.
The NYPD and the OCME did not immediately respond to PEOPLE’s requests for comment.
source: people.com