PLANTATION, FL — A 23-month-old boy was found dead inside an SUV outside a preschool in Plantation, Florida, on Monday afternoon, and police are investigating the circumstances surrounding his death.
Officers with the Plantation Police Department and Plantation Fire Department responded to A World of Discovery Academy around 5:39 p.m. after receiving a report of a deceased child inside a vehicle. Fire Department officials pronounced the child dead at the scene, and detectives opened a death investigation.
Authorities said late Tuesday that they had not released additional details about what led to the boy’s death. No charges had been announced.
Police and fire crews responded after a report of a child in a vehicle
Plantation police said in a post on X that the call came in Monday evening. The report led first responders to the preschool parking area, where they found the child inside the SUV.
Fire Department personnel declared the boy dead at the scene. Police said detectives then began gathering evidence and interviewing people connected to the case.
By Tuesday, investigators had not said what conditions they found at the scene or what may have caused the child’s death. The department said it did not have further information to release at that time.
Owner says the father and mother discovered the toddler in the back seat
Leslie Novoa, who owns A World of Discovery Academy, told ABC Miami affiliate WSVN-TV that she called 911 after she and the child’s father discovered the boy in the back seat of the SUV. She said the father had arrived to pick up his child when he realized the toddler was still in the vehicle.
According to Novoa, the father had not dropped the child off at school earlier that day. She described the family as longtime members of the preschool community.
Novoa said the family had been enrolled at the school for years and that the boy was the third child from the family to attend there.
Investigation stretched for hours as a tent was erected around the SUV
WSVN-TV reported that investigators spent several hours at the scene collecting evidence. A tent was placed around the SUV while police continued their work outside the preschool.
The vehicle and surrounding area remained under review as detectives worked to piece together what happened before the child was found. Officials have not said whether the death appears accidental or whether any other factor is being considered.
Police also have not said whether the SUV was locked, how long the boy may have been inside, or who last saw him before he was discovered.
Preschool owner urges parents to double-check the back seat
Novoa used the tragedy to encourage parents to make a final check of the back seat before leaving their cars. She said that simple step can help prevent families from forgetting a child inside a vehicle.
“Driving, making sure that they drop off the children at school, double checking the back chair always,” she told WSVN-TV. “You know, it’s just to make sure that they did the right thing.”
Her comments came as the preschool community faced the shock of the boy’s death. Novoa said the family was well known to the school and described them as loving.
No charges announced as detectives await more information
As of Tuesday afternoon, Plantation police had not announced whether anyone would face charges. The department said detectives were still gathering facts about the death and had not made any public determination about responsibility.
ABC News said it had reached out to the Plantation Police Department for more information and comment. For now, the case remains an active death investigation, with officials withholding details while they continue their review.
Police have not said when they expect to release additional findings or whether an autopsy or other examination will help explain how the toddler died.
