Heartbroken dad lashes out after his baby daughter was tragically found dead in his car outside an Earlwood childcare centre in Sydney
The distraught father of a baby girl who died after being left in a hot car has broken his silence for the first time, exclusively to Daily Mail Australia.
Etienne Ancelet spoke out to dispel previous media reports which claimed he and his partner Kim Visconti had made a public statement together over the death of their 14-month-old daughter Olivia.
The tot was found lifeless, still strapped into her baby capsule in his car, outside Jelly Beings Early Learning Centre in Earlwood, in Sydney’s inner west, on Tuesday.
Mr Ancelet made the horrific discovery just after 5.30pm when he arrived to collect her from daycare but staff had told him she had never been dropped off.
He then found Olivia inside his car where she had been mistakenly left for hours while temperatures outside exceeded 30C.
At his home on Thursday morning, Mr Ancelet told Daily Mail Australia the couple were still grappling with the tragic loss of their daughter.
And he said he was mystified by the previous statements which had been made public on his behalf without his knowledge.
‘Right now, the statement I’d like to make is that we haven’t made any statements to the media and we’re still processing this,’ Mr Ancelet told Daily Mail Australia.
‘I would appreciate a clarification that the family hasn’t made any statements and any statements online have been fabricated.’
Etienne Ancelet (pictured) cut a forlorn figure with his head bowed as he walked home from the local shops
Family members joined Etienne Ancelet (pictured) to walk to the shops for some groceries
Mr Ancelet’s heartbreaking screams rang out when he discovered his daughter in the back of the car, prompting nearby residents to rush to his side.
They desperately tried to revive Olivia before paramedics arrived five minutes later.
‘I killed my daughter! … F*** I can’t process this,’ he yelled before he was taken to hospital suffering from shock.
Olivia was pronounced dead at the scene. The exact circumstances of what happened are still being investigated.
Roy Gomes, who lives adjacent to the daycare centre, was mowing his lawn when he heard Mr Ancelet’s cries.
‘I heard screaming and ran out and saw the father with the baby,’ said Mr Gomes, whose home is next to the childcare centre.
‘I took her off him and tried CPR for about five minutes until ambulance arrived.
‘All the neighbours were really good at putting water on her, trying to cool her down because she was obviously still very hot.
‘But she was just floppy and there was no life.’
The distraught dad screamed in horror after he realised his baby daughter was still in the car
Baby Olivia (pictured asleep with her dozing father) was found in the car outside Jelly Beings Early Learning Centre in the Sydney suburb of Earlwood just after 5.30pm on Tuesday
Police established a crime scene and have started a major investigation. Detectives were seen arriving at the childcare centre as parents arrived to drop their kids off on Wednesday
Police established a crime scene and have started a major investigation. Detectives were seen arriving at the childcare centre on Wednesday as parents arrived to drop their kids off for the day.
Several left bouquets of flowers at the gate and on the nature strip.
‘Leaving a child in a vehicle at any time can be dangerous,’ Superintendent Christine McDonald said on Tuesday night.
‘Leaving a child inside a vehicle for an extended period of time can be deadly. This is an absolute tragedy.
‘It’s something that affects the wider community as well… this has a rippling effect right throughout our community because so many of us can put ourselves in a similar situation.’
No charges have been laid over the tragedy.
‘Once he’s able to, we’ll speak to (the father) to obtain more details,’ Supt McDonald said.
Olivia’s mother is also assisting police. On Thursday, a police spokesman said they would not be issuing any further updates on the tragedy.
Posts online show Mr Ancelet as a loving father who readily embraced being a first-time parent.
In March, he shared a photo of him and Olivia napping together with his little girl in his arms.
Alongside the image he wrote: ‘My most memorable birthday yet.’
Jelly Beings Early Learning Centre in Earlwood, in Sydney’s south-west, is pictured
Several mothers were seen leaving bouquets of flowers outside the daycare centre
Emergency responders who attended the ‘deeply traumatic’ incident will be offered support.
‘I’m a mother, you can imagine how traumatic, you just – in fact, you can’t even imagine it,’ Supt McDonald said.
The latest tragedy comes after the second anniversary of the death of toddler Arikh Hasan, who was left in a car for six hours on a 35C day in Glenfield in Sydney’s south-west in February 2023.
Newaz Hasan bundled his two sons into his car for the morning school run, dropping his eldest at primary school and believing he had dropped his youngest to daycare before returning to their Glenfield home to work.
