Dr. Neha Gupta, Oklahoma City pediatrician charged with the suffocation murder of her 4 year old daughter, Aria Talathi who she shared custody with the girl’s father after staging girl’s drowning death at a short term rental in Florida.
An Oklahoma woman has been charged with the intentional suffocation death of her own 4 year old daughter after investigators say she staged the girl’s death to look like an accident drowning according to Florida authorities.
Dr. Neha Gupta, who is a pediatrician, is accused of killing 4-year-old girl, Aria Talathi on June 27 and making the girl’s death to look like an accidental drowning after the child’s body was found ‘floating in a pool’ behind a home in El Portal at 156 NW 90 Street circa 4.30 a.m on June 27.
Despite responding Miami-Dade Fire Rescue performing CPR and rushing the girl to hospital, the 4 year old was soon after pronounced dead according to the Miami-Dade Sheriff’s Office (MDSO).
Oklahoma City pediatrician travels with 4 year old daughter to Florida without child’s father’s knowledge
Gupta, 36, a doctor at OU Health, and her daughter had traveled from Oklahoma City, and were staying at a short-term rental, MDSO said. Someone (thought to be the girl’s mother) called 911 to report that the girl was drowning in the overnight hours.
‘Through investigative means and consultation with the Miami-Dade State Attorney’s Office, detectives obtained an arrest warrant for Dr. Neha Gupta and traveled to Oklahoma City. With the assistance of the Oklahoma City Police Department’s Homicide Unit and the United States Marshals Service, they were able to locate and take her into custody,’ a news release from MDSO stated according to NBC6.
Gupta told investigators that she arrived at the home with her daughter on June 25. However, the child’s father, who shares custody with Gupta, was not aware that she had taken the child to Florida, according to an arrest warrant cited by KOCO.
Security video showed that Gupta and her daughter were the only occupants of the short-term rental property, according to the arrest warrant.
When first responders arrived on the scene, Gupta directed them to the backyard, where her daughter was found unresponsive and submerged in the deep end of the swimming pool.
Dr. Neha Gupta accused of staging fake drowning
During police questioning Gupta claimed waking up only to find find the sliding glass door located in the bedroom that leads to the backyard open. The mother insisted prior to going to sleep having locked the doors along with stating the pair going to sleep shortly after having dinner circa 9 p.m.
Unable to locate the 4 year old inside the home the mother then claimed finding the girl submerged in the pool. She said she attempted to remove her daughter from the water, but was unsuccessful due to the fact that she can’t swim.
She said she tried for about 10 minutes to get to her daughter before contacting emergency services.
But there was more to come.
On June 29, an autopsy by the Miami-Dade County Medical Examiner Department revealed that the child’s lungs and stomach did not contain water and were ‘considered ‘dry,” according to the arrest warrant. The medical examiner ruled out drowning as the cause of death.
The autopsy also uncovered cuts and bruising in the child’s mouth and cheeks, which is not consistent with the type of trauma sustained during life-saving measures, according to the arrest warrants. These wounds were said to have taken place before the child was ‘placed into the swimming pool.’
WPLG has since reported the 4 year old’s cause of death to be the result of suffocation.
Preliminary findings show that the child’s injuries were consistent with asphyxiation by smothering, according to the arrest warrant.
The autopsy also revealed that the victim’s stomach was empty, contradicting Gupta’s statement that the child ate dinner at 9 p.m., the warrant said.
An investigation led Florida law enforcement to obtain an arrest warrant for Gupta, who by then had already traveled back to Oklahoma City.
Come June 30, and arrest warrant for Gupta was issued out of Miami-Dade County for first-degree murder. The mother has since been taken into custody.
Gupta is pending extradition to Miami-Dade County, where officials said she would be charged with first-degree murder. Officials have said they plan to accept that first-degree murder charge, but she has not yet been formally charged.
Gupta’s attorney, Richard L. Cooper, previously provided the following statement:
‘We are waiting for the facts to come to light. An autopsy was performed over the weekend. The toxicology reports aren’t back yet. We’re eager to know why the Miami Dade Sheriff’s Office seemingly felt so sure to arrest and charge a grieving mother when all other signs point to a simple tragic accident.’
In a statement from OU Health and the University of Oklahoma, where Gupta had worked, her employer stated she ‘was suspended from patient care, given notice of termination, and was no longer seeing patients at the health system as of May 30, 2025. She has also been given notice of termination by the University.’
