An Oklahoma City pediatrician has been taken into custody in connection to the drowning death of her 4-year-old daughter in South Florida. Dr. Neha Gupta, 36, is facing a charge of first-degree murder after her daughter, Aria Talathi, was found unresponsive in a residential pool while they were staying at a short-term rental home in El Portal, Florida. According to WSVN, the incident occurred around 4:30 a.m. last Friday, and Miami-Dade Fire Rescue pronounced the girl dead after attempting to transport her to the hospital.
The circumstances of the drowning have yet to be disclosed, but an investigation is ongoing. The Miami-Dade Sheriff's Office managed to quickly obtain a warrant for Gupta's arrest following the event. Oklahoma City Police Department’s Homicide Unit and the U.S. Marshals Service were instrumental to swiftly apprehend Gupta, who by then had returned to Oklahoma City. As reported by KOCO, she is currently detained and awaiting extradition back to Miami-Dade County.
The Miami-Dade Sheriff’s Office and local police responded to the scene after receiving reports of the drowning at the address of 156 NW 90th Street. On the day of the incident, Gupta and her daughter had been guests in the El Portal village, an area within Miami-Dade County. The village's close-knit community has been left reeling from the news of the tragedy.
While details have not been fully released, authorities have hinted at troubling findings in the case. "MDSO is still investigating the circumstances surrounding the girl's death," according to a statement obtained by CBS News Miami. It remains unclear how the child ended up in the pool, and the nature of the evidence leading to Gupta’s murder charge. More information is expected to be divulged as the investigation progresses and moves through the legal system.
