An Arizona toddler was found alive in a morgue six hours after he had nearly drowned and was pronounced dead by a doctor.
Eighteen-month-old Vincent Lorenzo Fiordilino was pronounced dead at a hospital in Gilbert, Arizona, after he was discovered in a family member’s pool. But six hours later, the boy was found breathing in the hospital’s morgue, according to several media reports.
Fiordilino survived and has since been released from the hospital, the Gilbert Police Department told NBC News. But now, the incident is being investigated by the Maricopa County Attorney’s Office, and the police department has recommended his parents face charges, according to the outlet.
The incident unfolded in February, on Super Bowl Sunday. Fiordilino was taken to Mercy Gilbert Medical Center after he was found face down in a family member’s pool and a relative tried to perform CPR, according to a police report obtained by AZFamily.
There, he was pronounced dead by a physician, identified by NBC News as Dr. Aryan Toosi. According to documents reviewed by the outlet, when a police officer questioned him because Fiordilino still appeared to be breathing, Toosi replied: “Please do your thing and let me do my thing. I went to medical school for a reason.”
Fiordilino was taken to the hospital’s morgue, but when staff arrived to transport the boy’s body to the medical examiner’s office, they found he was still breathing, according to police records reviewed by AZFamily. He was then transported to Phoenix Children’s Hospital.
Toosi’s lawyer, Scott Holden, declined to give a “full statement” when contacted by The Independent, citing the investigation and “patient confidentiality.”
“As the police report indicates, the parents were arrested for felony child endangerment and are potentially facing prosecution. Because of this as well as patient confidentiality we are unable to make a full statement at this time other than to assure you that there is much more to this case, both factually and medically, than has been reported thus far,” he said.
Meanwhile, a spokesperson for Mercy Gilbert Medical Center called the incident “heartbreaking.”
“This is a heartbreaking situation. We immediately conducted a thorough review of all aspects of the care that was provided to learn what happened and to make meaningful changes to strengthen our care,” the spokesperson told The Independent.
“We are unable to comment on those involved in the patient’s care, and out of respect for the patient’s privacy, we cannot provide any additional details. We continue to work with the family and their representative. Patient safety and exceptional care are our highest priorities,” they added.
A GoFundMe has been launched to help support the family’s medical costs from the incident. While Fiordilino managed to survive, he still faces a “long and challenging recovery” and will need “extensive therapy, ongoing medical monitoring, and support for his healing organs,” the GoFundMe page said.
It said that he had suffered no brain damage and that doctors were calling him the “miracle baby.”
The Independent has contacted the Gilbert Police Department and Maricopa County Attorney’s Office for comment.
