Divers on Tuesday found the bodies of a 2-year-old girl and a 29-year-old man after the SUV was removed from the Kinnickinnic River. Investigators said the vehicle had been involved in several armed robberies.
The toddler’s 19-year-old mother died Monday night after the vehicle careened into the river during the police chase. The woman was recovered from the water but pronounced dead at the scene. Divers continued to search that night, but they couldn’t find any other occupants of the SUV until Tuesday.
Surveillance video shows the vehicle speeding and the driver losing control before the SUV crashes into the river. It’s unclear who was driving the vehicle.
Autopsies were scheduled Wednesday, according to the Milwaukee County Medical Examiner’s Office.
The sister of the woman, Kristin Nehmer, told WTMJ-TV that she is having difficulty understanding why her sister was fleeing police with her young daughter in the vehicle.
“I can’t imagine why she would have her daughter with her when she is doing things like that. That’s the hardest part,” Nehmer said. “She had a really good heart. She made a bad decision, but she was 19.”
Police have not identified the three people who were killed, but Nehmer said her sister’s name was Shannan Nehmer.
