Sherin case: Indian-American foster mom denies any involvement

Houston: The foster mother of a 3-year-old Indian girl, whose body was found on Sunday from a culvert near their home in suburban Dallas, has denied any involvement in the death of her daughter. Lawyers Michelle Nolte and Gregg Gibbs, representing Sini Mathews published a statement late yesterday saying she denied any involvement in the death of her adoptive daughter.

In the statement, the lawyers insist that Mathews cooperated with the Richardson Police investigation into her daughter’s disappearance on October 7. She was “interrogated for hours by several officers with no attorney present” a few days later, as per the statement.

The statement adds, “Now that Mr Mathews has turned himself into the police and told them what happened to Sherin, we see no need for Mrs Mathews to endure further police interrogation. She had nothing to do with Sherin’s death or the removal of her body from the home.”

The lawyers write that Mathews is “trying to grieve for her lost daughter while still caring for her remaining daughter. She is struggling to pick up the pieces of a shattered life.” Texas Department of Family and Protective Services spokesperson confirmed that Mathews’ four-year-old daughter remains in foster care. Richardson Police had no immediate comment to the statement.

The police previously said Sini Mathews initially cooperated in the investigation on October 7, but then stopped. This week, police said Mathews provided dental records and identified clothing found with Sherin’s body in order to help the medical examiner make a positive ID.

Police also said Mathews never provided a full account of what happened when Sherin died. Wesley Mathews is the only person charged with a crime in Sherin’s disappearance and death. On Monday, police arrested him for a second time on an injury to a child charge after he told them that Sherin choked on milk.

According to court records, Wesley Mathews previously told detectives his wife was sleeping when Sherin disappeared. Earlier, Wesley Mathews, was booked into to the Dallas County Jail yesterday and has been placed under suicide watch.

Mathews originally told police his daughter Sherin disappeared while being punished, when she was forced to stand outside by a tree at 3 am for not drinking her milk. Later when the body was found, he changed his story and said that his daughter choked to death after he “physically assisted” her in drinking her milk.

Meanwhile, a petition has been started by community leader Father Thomas to not hand over the body of Sherin Mathews to her parents, and rather to the community, so that proper memorial and burial service could be done.