The mother of three children who drowned this week in Brooklyn was arrested Wednesday and charged with murder in their deaths, one of the most horrifying crimes against children in the city’s recent memory. .
The New York City Police Department said the mother, Erin Merdy, 30, of Brooklyn, was arrested days after Monday’s death of the child, who was identified by the department and relatives as 7-year-old Zachary Merdy ; Liliana Merdy, 4 years old; and Oliver Bondarev, 3 months old.
Medical Examiner’s Office in New York City Judgment on homicides by drowning Tuesday. An arrangement date for Mrs. Merdy has not yet been set.
In a typical year, about a dozen children are killed in New York City in situations that police classify as “domestic.” In some of those cases, there are missed signs and missed opportunities for intervention.
On Monday, the police department received a call just before 2 a.m. asking them to check on Ms. Merdy. A relative believes her children are in danger, authorities said.
Kenneth Corey, department head, said at a news conference that morning, officers found Ms Merdy, barefoot and soaked on the boardwalk in Brighton Beach, about 90 minutes later on Monday , without her children.
Police found the children two miles away at around 4:30 a.m., unconscious on the beach at West 35th Street in Coney Island. The children were taken to Coney Island Hospital, where they are presumed dead, Sheriff Corey said.
On Wednesday, members of the police department’s Area 60, who responded to the scene, thanked Police Commissioner Keechant Sewell in a Twitter parcel for assisting them in the days following the drowning.
In 2020, according to an unnamed law enforcement official, the city’s Children’s Services Administration found evidence to support claims of neglect or abuse against Merdy. Details of the case were not available and the agency said it was unable to discuss Ms Merdy pending the outcome of the investigation into the deaths.
But an agency employee who declined to be named because he was not authorized to discuss the case said on Tuesday that it had not filed a petition in family court against Ms. Merdy, asking to seek court-ordered oversight of the case. with family or remove children. from her custody.
Last year, after a chain of deaths of abused children When it appeared that investigators from the Police Department or the Children’s Services Administration skipped steps or closed cases too soon, the city overhauled its system to track families, including including additional unannounced visits and increased investigation.
On Wednesday, in the lobby of Merdy’s Coney Island apartment building, neighbors set up a small memorial for the children. Balloons featuring cartoon characters like Minnie Mouse fastened to a cardboard box filled with plush toys and a mini soccer ball – a nod to Zachary, who played wide receiver, guard and offensive line for a youth team called the Silverbacks.
“RIP Zachary Liliana Oliver,” read a note left at the memorial. “You will always be in our hearts.”
Merdy’s mother, Jacqueline Scott, requested privacy on Wednesday. She said her family is in mourning and declined to comment on the allegations.
Derrick Merdy, Zachary’s father and Merdy’s ex-husband, said he had fought for years for custody of his son and had called authorities several times about concerns about the boy’s welfare.
Mr. Merdy, from Norfolk, Va., said Wednesday that he has not yet held Zachary’s funeral. Details of services for the remaining two children were not immediately known.
Mr. Merdy said he was however prepared to bring his son’s body from New York City to Virginia.
“I will take him home to the VA where he should always be,” he wrote in a text message.
Sean Piccoli, Tea Kvetenadze, Kaya Laterman and Corey Kilgannon contribution report. Alain Delaquérière and Kirsten Noyes Contributing research.
