Case of little Daniel in Huelva: autopsy rules out grandfather’s suicide

The death of Antonio, the man who disappeared this Wednesday, December 7 in Huelva with his grandson, who is still very serious, continues to be surrounded by unknowns. The autopsy, however, rules out suicide as the cause of death, as confirmed by the different sources consulted.

The preliminary report has already been sent to the Investigating Court number 2 of La Palma del Condado, which has taken charge of the investigation of the case. To this day, the aetiology of death continues to be of undetermined origin and is pending complementary studies to the autopsy, which can take months.

During the forensic examination, which was carried out this Friday at the Institute of Legal Medicine (IML) in Huelva, different samples were collected and sent to the Andalusian Institute of Toxicology, which is based in Seville. Microscopic analysis of those tissues could shed light on the reason for death.

The mayor of Manzanilla, the town where Antonio lived, indicated that, according to what the authorities have informed the family, the autopsy suggests hypoglycemia -he was diabetic- as a triggering factor for death. The sources consulted by this newspaper insist that, for now, there is no clear cause, although low blood sugar is considered one of the hypotheses.

The reconstruction of the afternoon of the disappearance, that of Wednesday, December 7, would point to this point, since it so happened that Antonio was with his grandson in the Almonte outpatient clinic, where he was not treated, and later in the one in La Palma (he lost track there, around 6:00 p.m.), probably due to some health problem.

On the other hand, this hypothesis, that of hypoglycemia, does not resolve other questions that still surround the case, such as the fact that Antonio drove his car into a farm road in the neighboring town of Villarrasa, parked it on the side and he will stay with his grandson inside it without, apparently, using his mobile phone to ask for help.

During the first hours of the search, it was feared that Antonio, with a history of depression, had left with his grandson with the intention of taking his own life, hence the disappearance was considered disturbing due to the danger that both the child and the child were in. grandfather. However, the autopsy has given a new twist to the case by dismantling this thesis.

Antonio, 55, had earned a living in the countryside in charge of a farm, but he had been out for some time. Together with his wife, he helped out taking care of the baby because his son Antonio and his partner work in Almonte. Wednesday was one of those days. By late afternoon, Antonio should have taken the little boy back to Almonte, where the boy’s parents live, or to Manzanilla, where he lived with his wife. But he did neither.

The vehicle in which the grandfather and his grandson appeared.

Around 11 p.m., the mayor learned of the disappearance and contacted both the Civil Guard and the family to help with whatever was necessary. It was raining to seas in Manzanilla. The security guards of the City Council, despite the fact that they were not on duty, mobilized and began to search. “They traveled the entire term (about 18 square kilometers), all the roads, until the car got stuck in the mud,” says Carrillo.

The last contact with Antonio occurred at two in the morning this Thursday. The councilor for Festejos, Juan José Camacho, called him from his cell phone at that time and the man, after several rings, picked up the call. Antonio was silent for a few seconds and then hung up. The mayor heard no background noise or the cry of a baby. When he tried again, the phone was already disconnected. It didn’t come back on.

After a tense night, the town woke up stirred by the news. The Civil Guard had already mobilized all the resources and, after confirming that the weather conditions allowed it, they also deployed the helicopter that flew over the region from early in the morning. At the same time, the family spread the search on social networks, in which they shared photos of the grandfather, the child and the car – a black Skoda Octavia – in which they were traveling. Likewise, the media began to echo the news.

That diffusion was key. Some sharecroppers left the farm where they work and listened to the news on the radio telling the model of tourism that was being sought. They then remembered that they had seen one of those features on the lot, so they turned around and went to take a look. The car was still in the same place, on the side of a road at the entrance to the farm. The windows were up, but they could see Antonio and Daniel who were inside. The man was unconscious, they did not know if he was alive or dead. The little boy was still breathing.

Both were transferred by ambulance to the La Palma health center. The little boy presented an acute picture of hypothermia. He was evacuated by helicopter to the Virgen del Rocío hospital with a reserved prognosis, although, according to the mayor, on the way he “broke down in tears”, which fueled hope for his recovery. He is still very serious, although stable and pending evolution, according to reports from the health center.

The grandfather was taken to the Infanta Elena Hospital in the Huelva capital, where his death was certified. Apparently he did not show external signs of violence, so it will be the autopsy – which will be carried out this Friday morning – that will have to clarify the cause of death and with it the circumstances of this strange case.