The mother of a two-year-old has been taken into custody after an autopsy revealed that her deceased daughter did not shoot herself as police were told.
35-year-old Jessica Cantu of San Antonio, Texas was taken into custody on Friday after the medical examiner found that the child “could not have shot herself due to the gunshot being from a distance and not close proximity.”
Officials say Cantu told them in February that she and her 4-year-old daughter were in the restroom when they heard a loud “pop” sound. When she went to check out the situation, she found her 2-year-old in her room suffering from a gunshot wound to the head.
The child was rushed to an area hospital where she was later pronounced dead.
When asked how the child got hold of a gun, Cantu admitted that the gun belonged to her boyfriend Joshua Christopher Ramirez:
“During a recorded interview with Child Protective Services, [Cantu] admitted that Ramirez sells illegal drugs from a hotel because he is not allowed to sell drugs from the Dublin Avenue residence and that Ramirez had packed the duffel bag in preparation to travel to the hotel to sell illegal drugs for the evening,” the federal complaint states. “During a recorded interview with SAPD, the mother admitted that Ramirez is her
Ramirez was arrested in March and charged with one count of being a felon in possession of a firearm.

Due to probable cause, authorities were able to take Cantu into custody on child endangerment charges but say other charges are possible:

“Initially it was reported to police that the child shot herself,” the San Antonio Police Department said in a statement to the station. “Through the course of the investigation investigators gathered additional evidence including the medical examiner’s report that determined the child had not shot herself. With enough probable cause they were able to issue a warrant for child endangerment.”