Toddler's death ruled a homicide
Sarvia Elizabeth Velasquez died on May 2, 2010 at just 14 months old.
The autopsy was at first inconclusive, but subsequent tests revealed the girl died of asphyxia and it was not accidental, said Staff Sgt. Grant Miller on Wednesday.
Police found her in a home on 44 Street S.E. after responding to a report of a child in medical distress. She was transported to the Alberta Children's Hospital but could not be resuscitated.
The homicide unit, which has been involved in the investigation since the beginning, are pursuing the matter, Miller said.
Police revealed on Wednesday that officers had been involved with the family in the months leading up to her death.
Six weeks before she died the girl was taken to hospital suffering from a broken leg, said grandmother Francisca Anderson.
Bruce Anderson, the toddler's grandfather, said the system failed the child.
"If Elizabeth would have been taken away … she'd be alive today," he said.
The girl was living with her mother and her mother's boyfriend before she died, but her biological father was also involved as a caregiver, Miller said.
Police said they haven't ruled out anybody as a suspect in the homicide investigation.
They are asking anyone with information to contact Crime Stoppers.