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‘I'm Just Sitting In My Seat Crying’: Mom, Son Die In ‘Suspicious’ Fall At Petco Park Before San Diego Padres Game
Detectives are trying to uncover what may have led to the fatal fall of a San Diego mother and her 2-year-old son who were found dead on a sidewalk prior to Padres game Saturday.
Police are investigating the “suspicious” deaths of a California woman and her 2-year-old son, who fell roughly six stories from the stands of Petco Park in San Diego on Saturday, according to reports.
The mother and toddler, who plunged from the baseball stadium’s third level, had been in the dining and concessions area before the incident took place, authorities said.
The fatal plunge occurred minutes before the San Diego Padres and the Atlanta Braves took the field.
Around 3:51 p.m., police officers working the event were notified that two individuals had fallen from the stadium’s concourse level. Officers later found the bodies of mother and son on the sidewalk near 200 Tony Gwynn Way.
They were both pronounced dead at the scene. The identities of the victims weren't released, however, both the mother and son resided in San Diego. The mother was 40 years old, police said.
"Our hearts obviously go out to the family, but also to the people here who could potentially be traumatized who saw this," Lt. Andra Brown, a public information officer for the San Diego Police Department told the the San Diego Union-Tribune. "It’s a horrible, horrible thing. That’s why we’re giving it a very serious look."
Preliminary autopsy information hasn’t yet been released.
Investigators, who have remained tight-lipped about the incident, are now scrambling to uncover what may have led to the fall — and whether the mother and son’s deaths were accidental, or if foul play was possibly involved.
“The victims’ deaths appeared to be suspicious and, out of an abundance of caution, the San Diego Police Homicide Unit was called to [the] scene,” the San Diego Police Department said in a statement sent to Oxygen.com on Monday afternoon. “It is early in the investigation and little is known about the circumstances surrounding the deaths.”
Officials said detectives are actively working to secure evidence from the scene of the fall at Petco Park. Law enforcement is now banking on baseball fans who may have witnessed the incident to come forward to assist in the investigation.
The San Diego Padres, who lamented the incident in a prepared statement, also declined to comment further on the active case.
“We are deeply saddened by the loss of life at Petco Park last evening,” the team said in a statement sent to Oxygen.com. “Our thoughts and prayers are with the family of those involved. We will continue to refrain from comment on the nature of the incident as it is an ongoing investigation by the San Diego Police Department.”
Some traumatized fans also took to social media to documented the incident's horrific aftermath.
“I'm just sitting in my seat crying,” one Twitter user wrote. “Wtf even matters right now on the field knowing what went down here. If anyone is at Petco and needs a hug I'm down. This is beyond devastating.”
Investigators are urging anyone with more information related to the ongoing investigation to contact the San Diego Police Department’s Homicide Unit at 619-531-2293 or by submitting an anonymous tip through Crime Stoppers by calling 888-580-8477.
