Toddler dies in accidental drowning

The circumstances surrounding the drowning death of a two-year-old in a private home remain a mystery. Almost two weeks later, authorities are still leaving questions unanswered. On Oct. 14 around 3:47 p.m., the Hancock County Sheriff's Office received a call of an accidental drowning in the 10600 block of County Road 9. Bowen Roberts, 2, of Findlay, succumbed to his injuries later that night. At this time, the Sheriff's Office is still conducting an investigation on the incident. "We're still waiting for a release from the coroner," Hancock County Sheriff Michael Heldman said. Until the coroner releases their report, no information is available. "We are not giving any information out on this case," a coroner office's employee said. "A typical investigation takes about four months." In the meantime, the family has started a GoFundMe, which is available at gofundme.com/f/bowen-john-roberts. Organizers of the GoFundMe campaign described the child's death as a "tragic accident," but authorities have yet to release a manner of death. The Courier made a public records request for an incident report from the sheriff's office. A report was provided Monday morning, but it did not provide any details or information describing the circumstances of what had occurred. Generally, an incident report includes information about the incident. Coroners' offices generally release a preliminary autopsy report after an autopsy is completed. That report usually contains the cause and manner of death. The sheriff's office did not release any information on Monday but indicated they would on Tuesday. A message seeking comment was also left with the county coroner's office. A recording of the 911 call indicates the boy got out of the house and fell into a pond. He was found unresponsive and the dispatcher attempted to assist the caller in giving CPR instructions. Sirens could be heard in the distance and the call was disconnected at that point.