Father of 2-year-old who drowned arrested

Las Vegas police arrested a 26-year-old man Tuesday in connection with the drowning of his 2-year-old daughter.

Francisco Vidal, 26, was asleep when his 2-year-old daughter, Khloe Ann Vidal, drowned in a neighbor’s pool after she opened her front door and left the house last week, according to police reports.

Khloe’s mother left for work early on the morning of Oct. 17 and told Vidal to lock to the door as she left, the report said.

Vidal told police that he did not lock the door before falling asleep for seven or eight hours. He woke up when the girl’s mother, who was Vidal’s girlfriend, came home about 5:30 p.m.

Both Vidal and Khloe’s mother said the girl had opened the door by herself multiple times in the past, but was always noticed quickly.

When Vidal and Khloe’s mother realized she wasn’t inside their home in the 7700 block of Morning Cove Court, near Decatur Boulevard and Grand Teton Drive, they called 911 to report her missing.

About 6:10 p.m., Khloe was found floating in a backyard pool four houses down from Vidal’s home. Neighbors and firefighters performed CPR on Khloe, who was unresponsive, after she was taken out of the pool. She was taken to Centennial Hills Hospital Medical Center where medical personnel unsuccessfully worked for nearly two hours to resuscitate her.

While at the hospital, Khloe’s mother and a Las Vegas police detective urged Vidal to come to the hospital, but he refused, saying that the detective was “messing” with him about his daughter still being worked on, the report said.

Two friends of the mother, who had watched Khloe in the past, told police they were concerned with the environment that Khloe was living in. One told police she regrets not calling Child Protective Services about her concerns.

Police searched the house after obtaining a warrant, and found the residence to be “poorly kempt,” the report said. Crime scene investigators noted several hazards throughout the house and in the backyard, including accessible car parts, broken furniture, and a large pile of broken glass on the patio.

In an interview with a detective, Vidal said he knew that Khloe could open the front door if the deadbolt wasn’t locked, and had purchased a “slide type lock” that he planned to attach to the door well above her reach, but never installed it, the report said. He also told police that he never locked the door after his girlfriend left.

Vidal told police he had taken four over-the-counter pain pills that morning before falling asleep, but denied any other drug or alcohol use.

Vidal was booked into the Clark County Detention Center on Tuesday. He faces one count of child neglect in connection with the death of his daughter. A preliminary hearing is set for Nov. 13.

Contact reporter Colton Lochhead at clochhead@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-4638. Follow @ColtonLochhead on Twitter.