Police and firefighters responded to a call about a 2-year-old child not breathing around 7 a.m. Tuesday at a home near 48th Street and Roeser.
Officers performed CPR on the girl, but ultimately, she was transported to an area hospital in extremely critical condition, fighting for her life. She was later pronounced dead.
Police say the reason for her not breathing is suspicious at this point. They believe she may have been beaten to death.
Sgt. Trent Crump said the child had obvious signs of trauma to her body.
The child doesn't live at the home. She was not under the care her parents, but another male and female. Police are questioning them about this case.
Part of the investigation involves questioning the four other children who were inside the home at the time.
Police say the 2-year-old was being babysat for months by the male and female. Authorities say the husband and wife advertised their babysitting services on the Craigslist.org web site.
The child's mother dropped her off in July and never returned. Police say according to the care givers, the mother would only come back from time to time to pay them.
Police have located the mom and are questioning her along with the care givers.
Neighbors say they would see the little girl playing outside.
"She looked healthy..always running around, trying to play with dolls and stuff like that. She'd go back inside or else they'd take off and go to the store or something."
Authorities say they don't believe any of the four other children in the home were abused. They're all under the age of 8. Two of the children belong to the care givers, while the other two were being babysat.
