Cleveland Girls Pulled From Bathtub Die*

Tuesday October 2, 2007 1:46 AM

By M.R. KROPKO

Associated Press Writer

CLEVELAND (AP) - A 2-year-old girl and her 4-year-old sister were
apparently drowned in a bathtub Monday, and their mother was arrested,
police said.

A man who said he is the girls' father told investigators the woman
called him at work and said their children ``are at peace,'' said
Cleveland police Lt. Thomas Stacho.

The man, 23-year-old Jamie Cintron, told police he went to the woman's
apartment and pulled the girls from the water in the bathtub.

``Both my daughters are laying here dead! Why? Why are my daughters
dead?'' a weeping Cintron screamed during a 911 call.

Stacho said the girls were placed on life support by a city medical
services crew and were pronounced dead at MetroHealth Medical Center.

Police arrested the 22-year-old woman for questioning at her apartment,
where she would not answer questions apart from her name, age and
address, Stacho said. No charges had been filed, but she remained in
jail Monday night.

``At this point she's our only suspect,'' Stacho said.

Deondra Hurt, 19, who lives in the same two-story apartment building,
said she heard the girls' father screaming and shouting. She later went
to the apartment and saw their mother ``on a couch, and she was just
sitting there. She was a nice girl. It's real sad.''

Stacho said the girls apparently drowned, but autopsies were pending
Tuesday to officially determine the causes of death. The county coroner
was trying to confirm the victims' correct names Monday.

Hurt said the woman had taken good care of the children.

``She always had her kids dressed up, with hair done every day,'' Hurt
said. ``They were well-behaved kids. They played jump rope and would
write on the ground with chalk.''

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Associated Press writer Joe Milicia in Cleveland contributed to this report.