ORMOND BEACH, Fla. - A mother from Ormond Beach was arrested this week after her 3 year-old son drowned in a retention pond at the family's apartment complex. 22 year-old Myra Santiago is accused of leaving her son Aziryh alone for 8 hours leading up to his tragic death.
According to an arrest report, Santiago left the front door of her apartment unsecured while she fell asleep, leading to Aziryh walking outside on his own. Myra reportedly took to Facebook Messenger to ask that a neighbor tell police that they'd watched over Aziryh, and that she'd explain everything later. The neighbor showed the messages to police.
Santiago was arrested and charged with aggravated manslaughter of a child and child neglect, and is slated to appear in court Tuesday afternoon. As of Tuesday morning she was being held at the Volusia County Branch Jail on no bond.
According to police, Aziryh was seen on surveillance cameras exiting the home at around 6:46 am with a tablet of some sort. He was then seen making his way toward the retention pond that he would later be found dead in.
While speaking to police about the incident Santiago reportedly said that her son had escaped before, and that she had inquired about having locks placed on her door. The maintenance team at the San Marco Apartments apparently told her she'd have to buy them herself.
