Left on vacation

Mother left baby alone for 10 days: child died

Kristel Candelario must serve life in prison.(Bild: Cuyahoga County Sheriff‘s Department, Aldeca Productions/stock.adobe.com Krone KREATIV,)

The agony suffered by a 16-month-old child in Cleveland in the US state of Ohio is almost unimaginable: Jailyn was left alone in the apartment by her mother for ten days while the 32-year-old went on vacation. When Kristel Candelario returned, her daughter had starved and died of thirst.

The tragedy took place last June and was recently heard in court. Horrific details came to light. Candelario had put the little girl in a playpen and traveled to Puerto Rico with her boyfriend and older daughter. 

The case caused horror on social media: 

Woman posted picture from the beach while daughter died of thirst
During her vacation, the 32-year-old shared pictures of the beach and wrote: "The time you enjoy is the time you really live." Meanwhile, her 16-month-old daughter was struggling to survive at home. When Candelario returned ten days later, she discovered that the child was no longer breathing. The emergency services found the child on a mattress covered in urine and feces - they could only determine that the girl had died.

In this post, you can see the vacation photo that the 32-year-old had shared on social media while her daughter was home alone:

Mother pleaded guilty in court
The woman is said to have suffered from mental health problems when she left her daughter to fend for herself while on vacation. She was charged with aggravated murder and child endangerment and pleaded guilty. "The loss of my baby Jailyn hurts me so much," the 32-year-old explained during the court hearing. "I am extremely hurt about what happened. I'm not trying to justify my actions, but no one knew how much I was suffering and what I was going through ... God and my daughter have forgiven me." 

Kristel Candelario must serve life in prison.(Bild: Cuyahoga County Sheriff‘s Department, Aldeca Productions/stock.adobe.com Krone KREATIV,)

"Just as you did not let Jailyn out of her prison, you should spend the rest of your life in a cell without freedom," the judge finally declared at the trial. "The only difference will be that prison will at least feed you and give you the fluids you denied her." Candelario was eventually sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole.