Death of toddler being investigated

A toddler has died at a residential building on Ontario Street near Wellesley and Sherbourne streets just east of downtown, Toronto paramedics confirm.

Paramedics were called to an apartment unit at 666 Ontario St. on Monday morning after the child’s father awoke and found the boy cold and unresponsive in his own bed. He was about two years old.

An aunt told CityNews the toddler and his family had what appeared to be a bad cold. Everyone had gone to see the doctor and were sent home and told to drink plenty of fluids.

The boy’s death is being investigated by homicide investigators as is the case with all deaths of children under the age of five.

Witness Robert Lacroix told CityNews the child’s mother was sitting at a bench in front of the building, talking into a cellphone and crying. She was with another child.
“She was devastated. She was pouring her eyes out. She was crying pretty heavy,” he said.

An officer escorted her and that child, estimated to be about five years old, to hospital where he is in stable condition.

Const. Tony Vella said, the parents were co-operating with police.

“Officers have spoken to both the mother and to the father, and they’ve answered all their questions,” he said “At this point, we need to determine how the boy died and once the post-mortem has been completed we’ll have a better understanding at that point.”

An autopsy was scheduled for Tuesday.