A female pediatrician from Oklahoma is facing first-degree murder charges after authorities say she faked her daughter’s drowning to cover up an alleged killing while on a trip in Florida.
Female pediatrician taken into custody
Dr. Neha Gupta, 36, was arrested this week in connection to the death of her 4-year-old daughter, Aria Talathi.
The incident occurred while the two were staying at a vacation rental outside of Miami, on June 27.
Gupta initially told police she was woken up by a strange sound around 3:30 a.m. and found her daughter floating in the backyard swimming pool.
She claimed she attempted to resuscitate the child for ten minutes before calling emergency services.
Aria was transported to a nearby hospital, where she was pronounced dead at 4:28 a.m. But what doctors discovered during the postmortem examination contradicted the pediatrician’s version of events.
Surveillance video footage and autopsy results further challenged Gupta’s explanation, leading investigators to believe the entire incident had been orchestrated.
Medical personnel reported finding cuts and bruises inside the young girl’s mouth, which were inconsistent with a drowning.
Additionally, an absence of water in her lungs raised questions about whether she ever drowned at all. Investigators believe these signs could point to smothering.
Gupta was taken into custody by U.S. Marshals and Oklahoma City Police on Tuesday and is currently held without bond at the Oklahoma County Detention Center. Plans are underway to extradite her to Florida where she will face the murder charge.
Female pediatrician allegedly tried to fake drowning death
Detectives stated in an affidavit that Gupta attempted to disguise the killing by “staging an accidental drowning within the swimming pool of a rental property.”
According to her statement to police, Gupta said she and Aria had dinner around 9 p.m. and later went to bed together in the master bedroom of their rented home at about 12:30 a.m.
Hours later, she claimed she heard an “unidentified noise” that led her to the pool where she discovered her daughter unresponsive.
Gupta also told authorities she had tried to assist her daughter despite not knowing how to swim.
Investigators noted the toddler’s stomach was empty at the time of death, which did not align with Gupta’s story of having fed the girl earlier that night.
Aria’s father, Dr. Saurabh Talathi, stated that he had no knowledge that his ex-wife had taken their child out of state.
The couple, who divorced last year, were reportedly locked in a heated custody dispute at the time of the child’s death.
Gupta’s professional life had also been tumultuous. She had recently been placed on suspension from her position in May and was given notice of termination, according to officials from OU Health and the University of Oklahoma.
Gupta’s attorney, Richard L. Cooper, released a statement defending his client. “Dr Gupta was involved in a nasty divorce case but was otherwise compliant with court orders. My client had multiple opportunities to flee but instead stayed and cooperated with law enforcement, answered all their questions, etc.”
“My client feels betrayed by the MDSO,” he added. “We look forward to a thorough investigation and more facts/evidence to come to light which will hopefully show that there was no basis to arrest a grieving mother going through an inconceivable tragedy.”
In a comment shared with CBS News Miami, Cooper further criticized the legal actions taken against the female pediatrician.
“Let’s assume for a second that my client is innocent: She has had the worst tragedy imaginable occur, and then she’s locked up without bond and is missing her own daughter’s funeral,” he stated.
“Common decency would dictate that a little more than 1 day’s worth of investigation transpire before making such a dramatic move.”
Toddler drowns after stepfather’s cruel attempts to teach him to swim
In a similar case, a 2-year-old Arkansas boy is dead and his mother’s boyfriend is now facing murder charges after what investigators say was a horrifying attempt to force the toddler to learn how to swim.
Authorities in Arkansas say little Daxton Ray Bull died on June 17 after suffering injuries consistent with what they describe as a pattern of severe child abuse.
According to court filings, 29-year-old Dakota Shawn Hays repeatedly threw the boy into a swimming pool at a home in Arkansas while the child begged him to stop.
Deputies responded to the residence on June 14 after receiving reports of an unresponsive child.
Medical responders began treatment while officers questioned the adults at the scene.
Hays told investigators he was trying to teach Daxton how to swim when the toddler began “spitting up water.”
Eyewitness accounts from two other children at the home painted a much more disturbing picture.
A 6-year-old girl told police Hays kept tossing Daxton into the pool over and over, ignoring the child’s clear signs of distress.
The girl also alleged that Hays forced the toddler underwater to retrieve objects, according to the affidavit.
Daxton’s mother, 24-year-old Annastacia Atkins, admitted she had been inside the house resting while Hays and her son were in the pool.
She said Hays eventually came inside and told her something was wrong. When she went outside, Atkins claimed her son was shaking, and she tried to resuscitate him by performing chest compressions.
The medical examiner later concluded Daxton died from oxygen deprivation to his brain. The autopsy report stated the child had sustained extensive injuries, including blunt force trauma inconsistent with accidental injury.
According to the findings, the toddler had suffered from a range of physical harm, including multiple contusions to his face and head, abrasions on his torso and genital region, and bruising in various stages of healing. These injuries, according to investigators, pointed to repeated episodes of abuse.
The surviving children at the home told officers this was not the first time Hays had treated Daxton harshly.
One child said both Hays and Atkins used to hit the toddler with a wooden stick on his head, knees, feet, and toes.
Atkins is facing charges of permitting abuse of a minor and first-degree murder. Her bond has been set at $750,000.
Hays has been charged with first-degree murder and endangering the welfare of a minor. He remains in custody on a $1 million bond.
