DOUGLASS TOWNSHIP, Mich. — Michigan State Police are investigating the death of a young girl in Montcalm County.
Troopers went to a home around 5:30 a.m. Monday on W Stanton Road near Hillman Road in Douglass Township near Stanton. When they got there, they found an unresponsive child under the age of 2. Emergency responders tried to save her life when they arrived, but were unsuccessful.
The girl's father, Christopher Sanchez, identified the child as Vayda Vasquez, who would have turned 2 in April.
"I feel if my daughter was in my possession the whole time, this would have never happened," Sanchez said.
Sanchez said he learned of his daughter's death through social media and that Vayda was at the home of a babysitter he didn't approve.
"Whoever did this, if it was the lady or if it wasn't, they definitely deserve what's coming to them," he said. "And I hope they never see freedom ever again, because ... my daughter was an angel."
"And there are other people who have had children there," said Vayda's grandmother, Shawnerie Russell. "Their kids don't ever want to go back. They beg not to go back."
MSP didn’t say what led up to Vayda’s death. The MSP Crime Lab was at the scene as authorities investigated.
"It's a very sad situation here," MSP Lt. David Cope said. "Anytime there's a young child involved, it's very sad. I can't imagine what the family of the young child is going through right now."
