PANAMA CITY BEACH — Police are investigating the death of a 1-year-old child who was found unresponsive in a bathtub around 2 p.m. Friday.
Gaudalupa Ritchie Martinez was taken to Gulf Coast Regional Medical Center, where the emergency room doctor pronounced him dead, Panama City Beach Police Chief Drew Whitman said. First responders had performed CPR, which was already in progress when they arrived, on the way to the hospital.
“It’s a tragic situation when someone dies that young,” Whitman said.
Investigators were at the scene Friday night at Edgewater Golf Villas, where Gaudalupa and his family moved about three months ago from Tennessee, Whitman said. The toddler, his mother and two siblings were home at the time, and Martinez might have been unsupervised for “a short period of time,” he said.
“We don’t expect foul play, but we’re making sure there was no neglect of the child,” Whitman said.
It’s too early to tell whether any charges will be filed in connection to the toddler's death.
“We’re not going to do anything until we get the investigation completed and get the results from the autopsy,” he said.
It’s unknown when the Medical Examiner’s Office will perform an autopsy