Inset: Briana Arnold (Chittenden Unit for Special Investigations). Background: The apartment complex where Arnold's infant daughter drowned to death in Burlington, Vt. (Google Maps).
Law enforcement in Vermont is on the lookout for a mother who they say was high on drugs when her infant daughter drowned in the bathtub.
Briana Arnold, 34, stands accused of involuntary manslaughter, cruelty to a child with death resulting and possession of narcotics, according to warrants issued for her arrest.
The manhunt is being conducted by the Chittenden Unit for Special Investigations (CUSI), a multi-agency task force with a focus on crimes against children that serves the broader Green Mountain State.
The underlying incident occurred at some time around 1 p.m. on the afternoon of Oct. 4, 2024, at an apartment on Main Street in Burlington, according to the Burlington Police Department.
On the day in question, a 911 call was made about a drowning child, police said. In the apartment unit, responding officers found Arnold performing CPR on her 3-month-old daughter. Paramedics took over those lifesaving measures as the little girl was rushed to a nearby hospital. There, the child eventually succumbed to her injuries.
After the child's death, the case was referred to CUSI and investigators quickly executed a search warrant on the residence, according to the Vermont Daily Chronicle. That search allegedly turned up an open container in the stove in the kitchen, which was later determined to be fentanyl.
Investigators also managed to obtain a sample of the defendant's blood in order to perform a toxicology test. That test turned up the presence of benzoylecgonine, fentanyl, norfentanyl and methadone, police say.
After an autopsy, the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner determined the infant, Sapphira Tanita Perez Sanchez, died by drowning.
Over time, the law enforcement narrative came together.
While under the influence of various narcotics, Arnold left her daughter alone in a bathtub as it was filling with water, police claim.
On Oct. 27, a court signed off on the arrest warrants.
Arnold, for her part, recently made contact with law enforcement and knows about the warrants out in her name but has refused to meet with authorities or turn herself in, CUSI officials claim.
Now, law enforcement is asking for the community's help with bringing the wanted mother in and encouraging Vermonters to either contact CUSI directly or the local police department.
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