Toddler found dead inside van parked outside Florida day care

The toddler was found dead inside a van parked outside Little Miracles Academy in Orlando, Fla. (FOX35 Orlando)

A worker from a Florida day care cited last month for transportation issues allegedly left a toddler for hours in a van parked outside the building -- where officers ultimately found the boy's lifeless body Monday night.

Officers received a 911 call alleging possible neglect at the Little Miracles Academy in Orlando about 8:30 p.m., FOX35 reported. They discovered a 3-year-old boy, identified as Myles Hill, unconscious and unresponsive in a van parked outside the building. He was later pronounced dead.

"This is an absolute tragedy which could have been prevented,” Orlando Police Chief John Mina said Tuesday.

The day care worker picked up Hill, who would have turned 4 in two weeks, from the child's grandmother's house Monday morning, officials said, and the worker didn't notice Hill was still in the van when she dropped the children off at Little Miracles Academy. She then drove the van to the day care's other location, leaving Hill in the vehicle all day, authorities said.

Mina said police believe the toddler was left in the van since 9 a.m., but an autopsy will be conducted to confirm the information.

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"The day care worker has been very cooperative and is obviously very distraught," Mina said, adding criminal charges are still pending.

The worker admitted she didn't do a head count when she dropped off the child. She had called 911 when she discovered the boy in the van after Hill's frantic grandmother had filed a missing child report.

Little Miracles Academy did not address the incident and took down its Facebook page just before 9:30 p.m., WFTV reported.

The Florida Department of Children and Families previously cited the day care for five violations, The Orlando Sentinel reported. The most recent one was in July when officials discovered it failed to comply with transportation rules such as keeping a log of arrival and departure times.

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