Toronto toddler who died after breakfast at sleepover ate poisoned cereal: police
The mother of a three-year-old girl, who died after police reported she ate poisoned cereal at a sleepover, says she's praying for her daughter's justice after charges were laid in connection to her death.
An investigation into the death of Bernice Nantanda Wamala was launched on March 7 after she became violently ill and died while at a sleepover.
According to police, a 45-year-old man placed a controlled substance, which he obtained from his place of employment, into breakfast cereal.
During a sleepover, Bernice and another child consumed the cereal. They were both rushed to the hospital as a result.
Bernice died in hospital hours after eating the cereal, while the other child recovered after a lengthy hospital stay.
"All I am praying for is my daughter’s justice," Maurine Mirembe told CTV News Toronto on Monday.
In early March, Mirembe said her daughter was with a friend at a Scarborough apartment unit in the same building where they lived.
She received a call from the friend's mother saying that Bernice was vomiting and having some type of reaction following breakfast.
"When I went upstairs, I found Bernice laying in a chair," Mirembe said at the time, adding that her daughter was barely breathing. "She was so weak and when I checked her mouth it was grey."
"I even squeezed her middle finger to see if the blood was moving, but nothing.”
Mirembe said that the friend's mother called 911, but the operator put them in contact with a Telehealth Ontario nurse who told them to take Bernice to the closest hospital.
The child was brought to Michael Garron Hospital and placed on oxygen. After numerous tests and resuscitation attempts by the doctors, Mirembe said her daughter was taken off life support.
Bernice was pronounced dead exactly one week after her third birthday.
In a news release issued Monday, police said that a suspect identified as Toronto resident Francis Ngugi had been taken into custody in connection with the investigation.
He has been charged with two counts of administering a noxious substance to endanger life, two counts of unlawfully causing bodily harm and criminal negligence causing death.
Police did not say if the suspect knew or had any relation with the children or the families involved.
The charges have not been proven in court.
With files from CTV News Toronto's Sean Davidson
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
MPP Sarah Jama asked to leave Ontario legislature for wearing keffiyeh
MPP Sarah Jama was asked to leave the Legislative Assembly of Ontario by House Speaker Ted Arnott on Thursday for wearing a keffiyeh, a garment which has been banned at Queen’s Park.
Mountain guide dies after falling into a crevasse in Banff National Park
A man who fell into a crevasse while leading a backcountry ski group deep in the Canadian Rockies has died.
2 teens charged in Halifax homicide: police
Two teenagers have been charged with second-degree murder in connection to an alleged homicide near the Halifax Shopping Centre earlier this week.
'Deep ignorance': Calls for Manitoba trustee to resign sparked after comments about Indigenous people and reconciliation
A rural Manitoba school trustee is facing calls to resign over comments he made about Indigenous people and residential schools earlier this week.
ByteDance prefers TikTok shutdown in U.S. if legal options fail, Reuters sources say
TikTok owner ByteDance would prefer to shut down its loss-making app rather than sell it if the Chinese company exhausts all legal options to fight legislation to ban the platform from app stores in the U.S., four sources said.
12-year-old hippo in Japan raised as a male discovered to be a female
When Gen-chan arrived at a zoo in Japan in 2017, no one questioned whether the then-five-year-old hippopotamus was a boy. Seven years later, zoo staff made a surprising discovery: Gen-chan, now 12, was female.
Here's why Harvey Weinstein's New York rape conviction was tossed and what happens next
Here's what you need to know about why movie mogul Harvey Weinstein's rape conviction was thrown out and what happens next.
Improve balance and build core strength with this exercise
When it comes to cardiovascular fitness, you may tend to focus on activities that move you forward, such as walking, running and cycling.
Legendary hockey broadcaster Bob Cole dies at 90: CBC
Bob Cole, a welcome voice for Canadian hockey fans for a half-century, has died at the age of 90. Cole died Wednesday night in St. John's, N.L., surrounded by his family, his daughter, Megan Cole, told the CBC.