Mother to face murder charges in deaths of Miami toddler twins found in van on I-95, police say
MIAMI - Miami-Dade Police said Thursday that the mother of two twins who were found unresponsive in a silver van on the northbound I-95 ramp to the Turnpike Extension at the Golden Glades interchange back in February will be facing charges in their deaths.
Police said Shirlene Alcime, the children's mother, will be facing murder charges in the case.
At the time, Alcime was rushed to HCA Florida Aventura Hospital, where she was listed in critical condition.
Her husband spoke to CBS News Miami.
"I don't know what happened," said Milson Cadet, who identified the children as 3-year-old twins Milendhere Gabriel Napoleon Cadet and Milenjhit Gabriella Napoleon Cadet.
"I went to work at 5 a.m. Thursday and then I came back home. I didn't see my wife at home (or) the kids. We have an office. I checked at the office. Around (midnight) I didn't see her at the office. I started calling her on the phone. She never picked up."
According to Miami-Dade Police, around 2 a.m. on the day of the incident, they received a call about a child who was unresponsive in the vehicle. Shortly afterward, they received another call that a second child was unresponsive.
"Just after our units arrived, they located a female on the scene who was the driver of the vehicle. She was driving the vehicle where these juveniles were located. And that adult female went over the railing to the on-ramp onto the railroad tracks which is a considerable distance," said Miami-Dade police detective Andre Martin.
"The juveniles that were located in the backseat of the vehicle were transported to a nearby hospital where despite medical efforts they were pronounced deceased," he said.
The children were 3-year-old fraternal twins, a boy and a girl.
"Not just as a police officer, but as a father. Any case, any incident, such as this one that results in the death of a child is very, very difficult. My prayers are with the family of these children," said Martin.
CBS News Miami spoke with Suzett Morant, who shared photographs of the children and the woman, whom she and other family members said was the children's mother, Shirlene Alcime.
"To be honest with you she was a good mother," Morant said. "She has an older son who is 16 years old. She has been such a good mother and that is why I co-signed on a car for her to make sure that she and her kids would be safe. The person I know would never do anything like that."
Martin said the person who called was not the driver, but a passerby in another vehicle.
Cadet said his wife had "no problems mentally," works full-time and has run her own tax business for seven years.
"This isn't someone with problems," he said. "I don't know what happened. Today I get a response (from police that) I have two kids, my beautiful kids who died in a condition that I don't know."