3 year old girl from Mass. dies in New Mexico; mother among 4 arrested

A woman who had been living in Massachusetts is among four people who are facing child abuse charges in connection with the death of her 3 year old daughter in New Mexico. Kerri Santos, 33, most recently of Gardner, has been charged with child abuse resulting in death, child abuse resulting in great bodily harm and aiding/abetting in criminal sexual contact of a minor, according to a criminal complaint shared with NewsCenter 5.

The criminal complaint states Santos brought her 3 year old daughter to the University of New Mexico Hospital in Albuquerque on Saturday and told medical personnel that the child was not feeling well. The young girl was pronounced dead at the hospital upon arrival. According to the criminal complaint, Santos told police that she was traveling from Massachusetts to get away from a bad situation.

She told police she had been living with her aunt and uncle in Gardner for over a year after previously living in North Carolina. Santos claimed her aunt and uncle had been verbally abusive, which is why she left Massachusetts, and that she had no final destination in mind. Albuquerque police sent inquiries to the Gardner Police Department for any report history that would help them provide more insight into Santos and identify her relatives, the criminal complaint states.

According to the complaint, Gardner police found an investigation with the Massachusetts Department of Children and Families regarding suspicion of Santos using drugs around her children, as well as multiple domestic violence reports involving a man Santos did not tell Albuquerque police about. The criminal complaint also states a doctor and registered nurse told Albuquerque police that Santos' story was extremely suspicious and that the 3 year old girl had bruising in different stages of healing all over her body with areas of concern.

The doctor and nurse claimed that Santos had her daughter wrapped in a blanket when she brought her into the emergency room, and when medical staff attempted to pull back the blanket to examine the girl, Santos pulled away and asked why they needed to. Staff were eventually able to get the girl from her mother and into a room, where they discovered the child was already dead, according to the criminal complaint.

The complaint states that Santos told police her daughter fell off a toilet at a rest stop and hit her face on the floor and at the time, the girl was awake and talking but complained of feeling weak and wanting to lie down. Santos claimed she later stopped at a gas station along the interstate to check on her daughter.

The girl's eyes were open, but she was not talking and making a groaning sound, according to Santos' account to police. Santos told police this concerned her, which is why she drove to UNM Hospital by following signs from the highway. The complaint states Santos drove about 30 minutes before getting to the hospital.

Court records state that Santos and her three children — ages 6, 3 and 6 months — had been staying with Christina Pena Cantor at a studio apartment on the 3000 block of Gold Avenue SE in Albuquerque. The records state Pena Cantor had ordered her son, Austin Bing, to tie Santos' 3 year old daughter to a bed on Friday.

Later that evening, the child was taken to the bathroom when she fell and hit her head, according to the documents. According to the court records, the 3 year old girl was taken to the hospital after Santos argued with Pena Cantor and Bing but that Santos had agreed to lie about what happened. The records state Santos eventually took police to a studio apartment on the 2100 block of Gold Avenue SE.

Albuquerque police then executed a search warrant and arrested Pena Cantor, Bing and James Welch. Santos, Pena Cantor, Bing and Welch are being held at the Metropolitan Detention Center in Albuquerque. Sanots' 6 year old daughter and 6 month old child are in the custody of the New Mexico Children, Youth & Families Department.

KOAT assignment editor Sam Smith and KOAT reporter Julian Paras contributed to this report..