The family of a 22-month-old child who died in suspicious circumstances at her Dunedin home on Monday were quiet and kept to themselves, residents of the Dunedin street in which the death occurred say.
Neighbours of the Normanby St, St Kilda, rental property said yesterday the family of two adults and three children moved in two or three months ago.
Normanby St residents said they were "flabbergasted" and "shocked" by the child's death.
"You hear about these things happening, but you don't expect them to come to your own doorstep," one woman said.
One neighbour said his son went to the same school as the two older children - boys aged about 5 or 6.
He said the boys had not attended school on Monday.
An ambulance and three police cars had arrived at the house that night.
All was quiet on Tuesday.
Police vehicles arrived at the house on Wednesday and it was cordoned off, the neighbour said.
Neither he nor other neighbours approached by the Otago Daily Times had spoken to the family, but many had seen children playing in the front yard of the property.
The child's death was reported to police on Monday.
A postmortem was completed on Wednesday by lead pathologist Dr Noelyn Hung, of Dunedin, and forensic pathologist Dr Martin Sage, of Christchurch.
A scene examination by forensic staff from the Christchurch office of ESR was completed yesterday.
Detective Inspector Ross Pinkham said police could not comment further as the matter was before the court.
TV1 last night reported Child Youth and Family had been working with the family and that the two older children had been taken into care.
