SAN ANTONIO – The sudden death of a 4-year-old girl is getting some close attention from homicide investigators at the San Antonio Police Department.
The death of Olivia Briones left neighbors stunned at the Huebner Road apartment complex where she lived.
"It's just a strange incident. I really don't know what occurred," said a man who didn't want to be identified.
According to a police report, Olivia had bruises on her eyes, nose, arm and torso when a woman carried her into the Prue Road substation Sept. 5.
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Doctors later determined that Olivia also suffered a severe brain injury and a collapsed lung, the report said.
Police redacted the identity of the 34-year-old woman in the report, referring to her only as a suspect. But neighbors told KSAT 12 News that she's Olivia's mother.
"When I see her with the little girl, the little girl's pretty happy. And she's with her a lot," the unidentified neighbor said.
Others who live near the third-floor unit at the Chisolm Trace Apartments said they had never noticed anything unusual.
The report said the woman noticed Olivia didn't wake up at her usual time, and later found her vomiting in bed.
The woman said when she realized something was wrong, she carried the girl to a nearby bus stop, with plans to take her to the doctor, the report said.
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The woman said she noticed the child stopped breathing, so she instead went to the police station, the report said.
Officers called for medical help, and the preschooler was taken to University Hospital, where she died the following day.
"The little girl, she was always in good spirits," the neighbor said. "I never saw any bruises or anything like that."
The police report said when investigators asked the woman how Olivia was injured, she told them she didn't know.
The woman told detectives that she and Olivia live in the apartment alone, and that she was the only person around her since Sept. 2, the report said.
As of Thursday morning, the Bexar County Medical Examiner's Office hadn't determined how the girl died.
Police said the case is still under investigation and have not made any arrests.
