Mom May Not Be Charged After Girl Drowns In Swimming Pool
DENVER (CBS4) - A 7-year-old girl drowned in a pool at an apartment complex in Arapahoe County. The girl's mother was arrested early Friday and then requested to be released that evening because the district attorney decided not to file charges in the case at this time.
The sheriff's office says deputies were called to the Country Club Villas, a private condominium complex located at 8828 East Florida Avenue on Thursday afternoon. A neighbor pulled the girl, later identified as Schiphra Fieni, from the pool and dialed 911.
Zet Taylor, who lives a few doors down from Schiphra, said that he was alerted by Schiphra's 6-year-old sister, who he heard screaming for help. Taylor ran outside to the pool to find the 7-year-old girl lying face-down in the water.
"It was devastating," Taylor said. "My grand kids are about her age. And I was so helpless."
"It was really hard," said Tiffany Newton, another neighbor who broke down into tears as she recalled what she saw.
After hearing a scream, Newton ran outside and began administering CPR.
Unfortunately, it was too late.
"I felt horrible because I probably could have done something sooner if we would have known to look sooner," Newton said.
First responders took over CPR efforts upon arrival but were unable to resuscitate Schiphra. She was rushed to Aurora South hospital where she was pronounced dead.
Investigators say the girl was apparently unsupervised while she was in the pool. Her mother, Eve Gbeugre, 27, was arrested on suspicion of child abuse resulting in death.
According to the arrest affidavit, Gbeugre told police she had gone to Walmart to get food and was only gone for 20 to 30 minutes but later admitted to being gone for about an hour. She also told police that Schiphra did not know how to swim.
Several hours later, the office of the 18th Judicial District Attorney, George Brauchler, requested that Gbeugre be released. The DA's office also stated that no charges would be filed at the time but as the investigation continued charges may be filed.
Schiphra died just three days before her 8th birthday.
"It's heartbreaking," said Julie Brooks, a spokesperson with the Arapahoe County Sheriff's Office.
Brooks said that the girl's death came as a tragic reminder for parents to supervise their children, especially around water.
"Keep an eye on your child. It only takes a small amount of water for a child to drown," Brooks said.
On Monday, two girls and their babysitter died in a swimming pool at a mobile home trailer park in Pueblo.
Melissa Garcia has been reporting for CBS4 News since March 2014. Find her bio here, follow her on Twitter @MelissaGarciaTV, or send your story idea to mkgarcia@cbs.com.
