The young boy who was found dead outside a Homestead daycare facility Tuesday afternoon was likely left inside a hot van, a Department of Children and Families official told NBC Miami Wednesday.
Dominicue Andrews appears to have been left inside a van at the Jomiba Learning Center shortly before the 22-month-old boy was found dead near the vehicle which was outside the facility at 1100 North Krome Avenue around 3:30 p.m. Tuesday, said DCF's Director for South Florida Jacqui Colyer.
Colyer said DCF is considering suspending or possibly revoking the license for the facility.
Andrews' parents said they want answers for what happened to the boy.
"Everybody loved him so why would somebody want to hurt him?" the boy's mother, Porsha Andrews, said.
It's not the first time Jomiba has been in trouble with DCF. Colyer said the facility was cited earlier this year after three employees failed to sign a form that confirmed they had good moral character, and they are still in violation of the documentation problem.
Colyer said the facility, which has nine staffers, has been inspected twice since it opened in November and that 66 children were present at the last inspection.
The facility's director, Valeria Palmer, is licensed to care for 117 kids, Colyer said.
According to authorities, Miami-Dade Fire Rescue along with Homestead Police responded to the daycare center, on a report of a child in distress. But when paramedics arrived, they quickly determined Andrews was dead.
"The child was located in an alleyway near a van," said Miami-Dade Police Detective Roy Rutland. "It's unclear how long he was out there. There are questions about a van that is parked behind the facility that may be involved in this case, and certainly that van is a component of this crime scene."
Police say they're interviewing the facility's owner and witnesses, and that the cause of death will be determined by the Miami-Dade County Medical Examiner's Office.
A person who answered the phone at the facility Wednesday hung up on an NBC Miami staffer who was seeking comment.
