The San Benito County Sheriff/Coroner’s Office has launched an
investigation into Sunday’s tragic death of a 3-year-old boy who
drowned in the southern part of the county.
The San Benito County Sheriff/Coroner’s Office has launched an investigation into Sunday’s tragic death of a 3-year-old boy who drowned in the southern part of the county.
Jericho DeMaio, 3, was reportedly playing near a section of the San Benito River with his siblings at about 4:40 p.m. when the drowning occurred, investigators said. Jericho is believed to have been reaching for something when he slipped and fell into a 3-foot-deep puddle of water. Investigators said the youth sank to the muddy bottom of the murky pool of water and was never able to get out.
Paramedics, firefighters and deputies rushed to 18968 Airline Highway where they performed cardiopulmonary resuscitation in an attempt to revive the youth, investigators said. Jericho was taken by helicopter to Hazel Hawkins Hospital but was pronounced dead on arrival, the coroner’s office said.
The investigation is reviewing the child’s death as a an accident with a tragic result.
“There is nothing to indicate that this was anything other than a tragic accident,” Detective Sgt. Wes Walker said.
