Los Angeles mom charged with murder in deaths of 3 kids found inside home, DA says

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A California mother was charged with murder Wednesday after her three children were found dead in the family's East Los Angeles home earlier this week, prosecutors said.

The mother, Sandra Chico, 28, has been charged with three counts each of murder and assault on a child causing death, according to a statement by the Los Angeles County district attorney’s office.

"In an instant, three innocent children were taken from us and we are crestfallen," District Attorney George Gascón said. "Nothing is more heartbreaking than the tragic betrayal of a parent failing to protect their children."

LOS ANGELES MOM ARRESTED AFTER 3 YOUNG CHILDREN FOUND DEAD INSIDE HOME

Residents watch as authorities work at the scene after three young children were found dead in a bedroom at a residence in East Los Angeles, Monday, June 28, 2021. (Associated Press)

Someone called the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department around 12:45 p.m. Monday to report that two children were not breathing inside a home, according to the Los Angeles Times. Deputies arrived and found three children unresponsive in a bedroom. The children -- 3-year-old Mia, 2-year-old Mason, and 1-month-old Milan -- were all pronounced dead at the scene, authorities said.

Chico was taken into questioning and arrested that afternoon, FOX 11 of Los Angeles reported. Autopsy results were pending and sheriff's office Lt. Charles Calderaro noted it was too early in the investigation to speculate on a motive.

But a law enforcement official told The Times that the children showed signs of strangulation or suffocation.

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Earlier this week, the children’s grandmother – and Chico’s mother-in-law – told the station that the mother was unwell. 

Chico's older sister, Elizabeth, also stated that the mother started to show signs of postpartum depression after her youngest child was born earlier this year, according to the paper. 

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It did not appear there were any reports of child abuse associated with Chico, or at the home where the children were found, the Times reported. 

Fox News' Edmund DeMarche contributed to this report.