A heartbroken father is mourning his young daughter after she was found dead in a minivan near a PATCO train station during a hot Friday afternoon.
"I'm more than upset," 21-year-old Nasir Lawrence told NBC10. "I'm more than mad. I'm more than livid. I lost my daughter."
Lawrence's 22-month-old daughter Milliani was found unresponsive inside a vehicle parked at a lot near the PATCO stop on Berlin Road in Lindenwold, New Jersey, on Friday around 3:38 p.m.
Rescuers tried in vain to resuscitate the girl, who was pronounced dead at the scene at 3:54 p.m. Video from NBC10's SkyForce10 showed a white tarp covering an open door to a minivan parked at a lot along Berlin Road.
"It kills me to know that I won't be able to hold my 2-year-old daughter again," Lawrence said. "It hurts too much."
A man was also spotted weeping near the vehicle. Investigators have not revealed who that man was or who was supposed to be watching the girl at the time of her death.
"How do you leave a 2-year-old little girl in the car," Lawrence asked. "And you get on the train for about eight more hours, come back and you have someone break the window because oh, you say, 'I forgot. I left her in the car.'"
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Lawrence told NBC10 relatives of his daughter's mother had been caring for her while he was in jail. He also said he tried to get custody of his daughter after charges against him were dropped.
“I’ve done everything I was told to do,” Lawrence said. “Parenting classes. Psych evals. Anger management counseling. I’ve done drug tests and I’m still getting denied.”
Police have not released a cause of death and have not said how long the child was inside the vehicle. No charges have been filed as the investigating continues. Lawrence, meanwhile, is demanding answers.
"I will be following this all the way to the end," he said. "I am not going to stop until I get justice for my daughter."
If you have any information on the incident, please call Camden County Prosecutor’s Office Detective Mike Batista at (856) 676-8175 or DRPA Corporal Joseph Ebling at (856) 969-7884.
You can also email information to ccpotips@ccprosecutor.org.
