NEW YORK — The father of one of the children drowned to death in Coney Island earlier this week says he never saw the tragedy coming, having believed his daughter was in good hands in spite of his rocky past relationship with her mother.
“At one time, she was a great mother who loved her kids,” Shamir Small said of his ex-girlfriend Erin Merdy, who was charged with murder on Wednesday. “I didn’t see this coming. This is a complete shock.”
His daughter Liliana, 4, was found unresponsive on the Coney Island beach early Monday alongside siblings Zachary, 7, and Oliver, who was just 3 months old. Merdy was aimlessly walking barefoot nearby, according to police.
