Toronto police have charged a 25-year-old woman with murder in connection with the deaths of her two children, brothers aged four and five.
The woman, Vanessa Collias, was charged with two counts of first-degree murder on Thursday, police said in a Friday news release.
Police have not said how the two boys died, or how authorities will support the charges of first-degree murder, which require them to prove the killings were premeditated.
The Toronto Police Service described the circumstances of the alleged murders during a news conference earlier in the week. Toronto Police Acting Inspector Terry Browne said officers had rushed to a high-rise building in Scarborough around 7:30 p.m. on Sunday, after receiving reports that a woman, Ms. Collias, had fallen from a sixth-floor balcony.
When they arrived, he said, Ms. Collias was conscious, and relayed information that led authorities to break down an apartment door, where they found the two children without vital signs. There was no visible trauma to the boys’ bodies, Insp. Browne said. Ms. Collias was initially taken to hospital for surgery.
Insp. Browne said he does not believe the fall was accidental.
Sherry Moseley, a 10-year resident of the apartment building who said she lived next door to the family, described the boys as “beautiful” brothers.
During an interview on Monday, she said a funeral for the two siblings’ father had been held just days before they were found dead.
“Their parents always held their hand,” Ms. Moseley said. “They were happy children. Happy parents.”
She said her neighbour had knocked on her door for the first time early this month, crying and saying that her spouse had just died suddenly.