EXCLUSIVE
The devastated mother of a nine-week-old baby boy who died suddenly in mysterious circumstances has penned a heartbreaking tribute to her son as new details of the tragedy emerge.
Kiarnie Rodgers, 20, has shared a harrowing photo of a memorial set up at home to honour her son and a poem to him as she prepares to lay her little boy to rest.
Baby River was found dead at a property on Larbonya Crescent at Capalaba, in Brisbane’s southeast, on Sunday, August 11.
It is understood that emergency services had previously attended the same address and River had previously been treated at hospital for skull fractures.
Queensland Police have now launched an investigation and are understood to be treating the ‘sudden death’ as suspicious.
River’s maternal grandfather Cameron Faulkner has now spoken out to slam trolls who had passed judgement about his grandson’s death.
He said his grandson had been staying with his father at the time of the tragedy and had previously suffered a fractured skull after being pulled out of his dad’s arms by his older sibling.
‘My daughter is a great mother and I’m hurt to see that people who don’t know the full story get off on writing things they don’t know anything about,’ he said in a social media post in the wake of the tragedy.
‘My grandson was not abuse[d] he was loved dearly. My daughter was a loving caring mother who adores her kids.’
On Sunday, River’s mother described her son as an angel and vowed to love him forever and ensure that his older brother would always remember him.
‘We will never forget you, You are thought of everyday, The love we hold within out hearts, Never fades away,’ the poem reads.
‘Going on without you, Life’s not the same, Watch over us always, Until we meet again once more.’
Daily Mail does not suggest any of River’s family members were involved in his death.
Mr Faulkner has now launched a GoFundMe with a $9000 goal to help his daughter give River a ‘beautiful ceremony he deserves’.
‘River was a wonderful son/great great grandson/great grandson/grandson/brother/nephew/cousin,’ Mr Faulkner wrote.
‘We all loved him so much [and] there wasn’t a day that he didn’t bring warmth to our hearts with his beautiful smile and happy nature.
‘Any money that is donated is going towards this ceremony/funeral and if there is any money left over it will be put towards helping my daughter to help raise her other one-year-old son through this tragedy.’
On Monday, Queensland Police told Daily Mail that their probe into the tragedy is still underway.
‘Police are investigating the sudden death of an infant,’ a Queensland Police spokesman said.
‘Investigations into the circumstances of the boy’s death are ongoing.’