What to Know
- Three-year-old Zoey Pereira is dead after she found in a burning car in Queens Sunday night, officials said
- Authorities were called around 9 p.m. Sunday to a car fire at the intersection of Baisley and Rockaway boulevards in Springfield Gardens
- The girl's 39-year-old father has been taken into custody; no charges have yet been filed
A 3-year-old girl died after being found in a burning car in Queens that had its doors chained shut from the inside, law enforcement sources familiar with the case tell News 4. A gas can sat near the charred vehicle, footage from the scene showed.
The girl's father is in custody but has not been charged at this time in connection with the Sunday night Audi fire near Baisley and Rockaway boulevards in Springfield Gardens. The medical examiner's office has ruled her death a homicide.
Zoey Pereira, was pulled from the car's backseat in critical condition and later died at a hospital. Law enforcement sources familiar with the investigation tell News 4 the doors of the car were chained shut from the inside. It wasn't clear if all doors had been chained from the inside, or if they had been, how that was done.
Pereira's father, a 39-year-old man, was apprehended nearby. He had burn-related injuries, sources say.
He is being treated at an area hospital, where he is in stable condition. The investigation is ongoing.
