A mother has been charged with murder in connection with the deaths of her two young sons who were found without vital signs in a Scarborough apartment Sunday evening, according to police.
In a news release Friday, police said 25-year-old Vanessa Collias has been charged with two counts of first-degree murder.
According to police, on Dec. 10, just after 7:30 p.m., officers responded to a call for unknown trouble at an apartment building on Glamorgan Avenue, near Kennedy and Ellesmere roads.
When officers arrived, they located an injured woman on the ground, outside of the building. Police said her injuries were sustained during a fall from a balcony.
Shortly after, police located the woman’s two children, a 4-year-old boy and a 5-year-old boy, inside an apartment unit without vital signs.
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The children were transported to hospital where they were both pronounced dead, according to police.
The woman was also transported to hospital with serious injuries, where she remains in serious condition, police said.
On Thursday, Collias was charged and she appeared in court via telephone and was remanded into custody, police said.
The boys’ deaths were initially being investigated as suspicious. On Friday, police said their deaths are now deemed homicides.
Earlier this week, Insp. Terry Browne from the force’s homicide unit told reporters he did not believe the woman’s fall was accidental.
Browne said there was no information to believe there was anyone else with her on the balcony at the time.
A resident in the building told Global News the woman’s husband had died on Dec. 1. after a battle with cancer.
“She was obviously very distraught,” he said of the woman.
The GoFundMe identified the woman’s late husband as Costa, who Global News has confirmed was called Constantine.
The two young boys were named Yiannis and Mimi.
— With files from Global News’ Gabby Rodrigues & Catherine McDonald