Queens father arrested after trying to drown children at West Haven beach
A Queens father was arrested Saturday morning after he was caught trying to drown his two children, both under the age of 3, at a beach in West Haven, Conn., police said.
An officer on patrol near Ocean and Dawson avenues spotted an SUV parked on the beach around 2:30 a.m., the West Haven Police Department wrote on Facebook. As he approached, the officer heard desperate screams coming from the water and quickly raced toward the commotion.
When the officer reached the coastline, he spotted a man, identified as 41-year-old Romney Desronvil, and his two small children drifting farther and farther away, police said.
The father called out, telling him to stay away, at which point the officer determined Desronvil was “deliberately drowning his children.”
Additional officers and firefighters were called to the scene and provided assistance in rescue boats. They eventually managed to reach the trio, who had drifted some 100 yards away from the shore, police said.
Emergency responders began life-saving measures immediately after the children were pulled from the water. They were rushed to Yale New Haven Children’s Hospital and remained in critical condition, officials said Saturday evening.
Three police officers were also treated for minor injuries.
Desronvil has been charged with two counts of attempted homicide and two counts of risk of injury.
