Toddler found alone in house with dead mother’s body – and investigators suspect child may have been there for TWO days
- Police found a toddler in Melbourne’s home with his mother’s body
- The child may have been alone in the house for days
A toddler discovered by police in a Melbourne home with his mother’s body could have been there alone for up to two days.
Officers went to the apartment on Cottrell St in Werribee in the west of the city for a welfare check around 11:40 a.m. Wednesday and found the dead woman.
The child was unharmed but was taken to hospital as a precaution before being released into the care of distraught relatives.
Police said the woman’s death is not considered suspicious, but investigations into the cause are ongoing.
The block of flats contains a mix of council and private housing, with a neighbor complaining that there was a 48-hour gap between when welfare control was first called in and the officers showed up.
Police were called to the building on Cottrell Street in Melbourne’s west Werribee on Wednesday (pictured)
The police announced this on Wednesday evening.
“Agents conducted a welfare check at an address on Cottrell Street around 11:40 am and found a woman dead,” a spokesman said.
An autopsy will be performed to determine the cause of death, but at this stage it does not appear suspicious.
“A young child has been found unharmed… They have been taken to hospital as a precaution and are now being cared for by relatives.”
The shocking incident left the building abuzz with rattling.
That’s what a resident said The Herald Sun it was said that the woman had not been seen for over a week.
“I heard from her immediate neighbor that the keyboards for her room hadn’t been used for nine to ten days,” said Matt Giannelis.
“It (the welfare check) was reported two days earlier and they (police) didn’t look into it… It’s disappointing to say the least.”
Another resident said the building has an electronic key system that prevents most residents from accessing the woman’s floor, floor five, which could be why the child was not heard if they knocked or tried to get help .