Indian-origin doctor accused of killing 4-year-old daughter, staging drowning in pool
Neha Gupta, a 36-year-old paediatrician from Oklahoma, was living at a short-term rental home in El Portal with her daughter Aria Talathi, whom she shared custody of with her ex-husband.
On June 27, police responded to a 911 call around 4.30 am to a 911 call reporting a child drowning in a residential pool. Aria was taken to a nearby hospital where she was declared dead.
At the time of the incident, Gupta had claimed the child accidentally drowned after she sneaked out of bed at night and wandered outside. However, her autopsy did not find any water in her lungs or stomach, ruling out drowning.
Instead, the Medical Examiner's Office found signs of trauma inside the child's mouth and cheeks, which led them to believe that she was asphyxiated by smothering. Police claim Gupta staged the scene to make it appear like an accidental drowning. 'Should have been able to save her'
Miami police travelled to Oklahoma to take Gupta into custody. The arrest shocked her neighbours, who accused her of not doing enough to save the girl's life.
'She's a pediatrician. She should've been able to save that child in some regard, got out there to try to get her out of that pool,' one of them told WSVN.
However, Gupta's lawyers have maintained her innocence, claiming that her daughter's death was "devastating" and a "tragic accident".
'What could be more devastating than losing your daughter in tragic accident, only to then be jailed and accused of causing her death? Dr. Gupta did not kill her daughter.'
The Indian-origin doctor will be extradited to Florida to face charges of first-degree murder.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Time of India
2 hours ago
- Time of India
'I'm not proud': Soham Parekh breaks silence on defrauding companies, says he was forced to do it
Soham Parekh said he had dire financial circumstances that forced him to do three jobs simultaneously. Indian techie Soham Parekh, who has been accused of frauding US companies by working in several companies at the same time, owned up to what he did and said he did that out of dire fiancial circumstances. In TBPN's show, Parekh, who worked in multiple US companies lying to them about his location, admitted that the allegations against him are true but he is not proud of what he has done. "I'm not proud of what I've done. That's not something I endorse either. But no one really likes to work 140 hours a week. I had to do it out of necessity. I was in extremely dire financial circumstances," Parekh said in the interview. "I'm not a very people person. I don't share much about what's going on in my life. So I just thought: if I work multiple places, maybe I can elevate myself out of the situation faster," he said. 'I was decent enough, a good enough engineer' In his first interview amid the major moonlighting controversy, he said he likes to believe that he was decent enough, a good enough engineer, to essentially be able to work at three places because that's the only thing he did the entire day. "Some of these companies I worked at were before the Co-Pilot boom. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like 5 Books Warren Buffett Wants You to Read In 2025 Blinkist: Warren Buffett's Reading List Undo There was no AI-assisted programming," he said. Soham Parekh's scam came into light after Suhail Doshi, co-founder of Mixpanel and Playground AI outed him in an X post, warning everyone that Parekh scams startups by faking his resume and working multiple jobs at the same time. "PSA: there's a guy named Soham Parekh (in India) who works at 3-4 startups at the same time. He's been preying on YC companies and more. Beware," Doshi had said. "He hasn't stopped a year later. No more excuses." Several CEOs claimed that they interviewed Parekh and got to learn about his scam the hard way.
Time of India
3 hours ago
- Time of India
Criminal Justice season 4 ending leaves viewers stunned: The twist no one saw coming sparks storm of reactions online
If there's one thing the finale of Criminal Justice Season 4 proved, it's that no one really saw it coming. Released a day earlier than usual on July 3, the much-anticipated climax of the legal thriller took viewers on an emotional rollercoaster, leaving them stunned and, quite literally, speechless. What followed was a full-blown internet meltdown — from breathless praise to meme explosions, the finale became an instant sensation. Veteran lawyer Madhav Mishra, played with effortless gravitas by Pankaj Tripathi , returns to the courtroom battlefield in what is arguably his most morally complicated case yet. As the plot unfolds, viewers are drawn into the murky depths of a family's breakdown, where love, guilt, illness, and justice collide in heartbreaking ways. The show's gripping narrative, centred around the murder of nurse Roshni Saluja, reveals not just a legal puzzle but an emotional conundrum that tests every character involved. — kush1724 (@kush1724) A Finale That Left Everyone Guessing; and Guessing Wrong Social media has erupted in unison over the shocking final twist — a revelation that not only upended the murder mystery but challenged notions of justice and sacrifice. "Mind blown," "Did NOT see that coming," and "Best Indian thriller ever" were just some of the hundreds of reactions pouring in across Twitter (now X), Reddit, and Instagram. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Buy One, Get One Free, Up To 50% Discount, Expiring Soon Original Adidas Shop Now Undo — wakil_saheeba (@wakil_saheeba) — Shuk_law_ (@Shuk_law_) And then came the memes — thousands of them. From 'MIND BLOWN' GIFs to netizens captioning Madhav Mishra's moral dilemma with existential humour, the finale has given meme-makers enough content to last till the next season drops. — jaisantoshhhhh (@jaisantoshhhhh) — OfficialAayushi (@OfficialAayushi) A Legacy of Twists The Criminal Justice franchise has earned its stripes over the years with layered storytelling and rich performances. While previous seasons featured names like Vikrant Massey, Kirti Kulhari, and Jackie Shroff, this time it's the emotional depth of Surveen Chawla and Zeeshan Ayyub's performances that tugged at the audience's heartstrings. In conversation with India Today, Pankaj Tripathi had joked that the series changed his life — and for fans, this season changed their expectations. The creators pulled off a finale that dared to go beyond a whodunit, opting instead for a why-did-they-do-it and who-will-live-with-it narrative arc. While the show draws no hard conclusions on guilt, it does leave the viewer grappling with human fragility, love, and justice. The decision by Madhav Mishra in the closing moments not only redefines his character but adds philosophical weight to the entire season. It's less about courtroom wins and more about moral reckoning.
India Gazette
3 hours ago
- India Gazette
NCB busts global drug cartel, eight arrested
New Delhi [India], July 3 (ANI):Union Home Minister Amit Shah has congratulated the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) and all agencies on busting a global drug cartel. Shah said that Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led Government is determined to saw off every drug cartel and protect our youth, no matter where they operate from, an official statement from the Ministry of Home Affairs said. In a post on X, Shah said, 'Congratulations to NCB and all agencies on busting a global drug cartel. The probe set a stellar example of multi-agency coordination, resulting in 8 arrests and seizures of 5 consignments while triggering crackdowns in the US and Australia against the ring that operates across 4 continents and 10+ nations. Our agencies are constantly monitoring the sophisticated modes like crypto payments and anonymous drop shippers used by these gangs. PM Narendra Modi -led govt is determined to saw off every drug cartel and protect our youth, no matter where they operate from.' In one of the most far-reaching crackdowns against the illegal pharmaceutical drug trade, the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB), HQ Operations Unit, has successfully dismantled a transnational drug trafficking syndicate that used encrypted digital platforms, drop shipping models, and cryptocurrency to smuggle controlled medicines across four continents. What began with a routine vehicle interception near Bengali Market in New Delhi unravelled into a sophisticated criminal web operating across India, the USA, Australia, and Europe -- showcasing the global reach of illicit pharma networks and NCB's capability to lead coordinated international enforcement actions. This operation uncovered a global network spanning 04 continents and more than 10 countries. On May 25, acting on secret intelligence, the NCB HQ Ops team intercepted a car near Mandi House in Delhi. From the possession of its two occupants--both B. Pharma graduates from a reputed private university in Noida--3.7 kilograms of Tramadol tablets were seized. The arrested individuals confessed to operating a vendor profile on a major Indian B2B platform, from where they sold pharmaceutical pills to clients across the USA, Europe, and Australia. Leads from the interrogation led to a stockist in Roorkee, followed by the arrest of a key associate in Mayur Vihar, Delhi, who revealed connections with a contact in Udupi (Karnataka) responsible for organising bulk orders for shipments to the USA. From Udupi, NCB uncovered data on 50 international consignments, including 29 packages from the USA to the USA, 18 from Australia to Australia and one each to Estonia, Spain and Switzerland. The information was further shared with global counterparts and Interpol, leading to the identification and arrest of a bulk re-shipper and money launderer in Alabama, USA by the US DEA, along with a massive haul of controlled medicines. As per the official statement, the syndicate operated on encrypted communication platforms like Telegram, relied on cryptocurrency payments, PayPal, and Western Union, and used anonymous international drop shippers to evade detection. Further digital forensics led to the arrests of two more Indian nationals from New Delhi and Jaipur, who handled logistics and supply-side operations. The operators never shipped in their home countries and coordinated through Other Drop-shippers in the network to avoid legal consequences. The kingpin, who coordinated international linkages and finances, has been identified and located in the UAE. NCB is actively working in collaboration with UAE authorities. Investigations further revealed the existence of a clandestine pill manufacturing facility in Australia, directly tied to the syndicate. Law enforcement in Australia has successfully dismantled this unit. Operations in other jurisdictions are still ongoing. In a significant development stemming from intelligence shared by India's Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB), the United States Drug Enforcement Administration (US DEA) has apprehended a key player in an international drug trafficking network. Joel Hall, a major re-shipper based in Alabama, was arrested following a coordinated operation, leading to the seizure of over 17,000 tablets of controlled medication. During the crackdown, authorities also uncovered multiple cryptocurrency wallets and active parcels linked to the syndicate, indicating a sophisticated and tech-enabled trafficking operation. Investigative and enforcement actions concerning these digital assets and parcels are actively ongoing. Adding to the breakthrough, an Indian-American individual identified as a key money launderer in the network is now facing indictment in the United States, marking a critical step in dismantling the financial backbone of this illegal enterprise. In parallel, the US DEA has successfully intercepted five parcels, resulting in the recovery of approximately 700 grams of Zolpidem tablets, a commonly misused sedative. Investigations have revealed that the mastermind of this international drug trafficking network was operating out of the UAE, orchestrating both the orders and supply modules with a high level of coordination and compartmentalisation. The orders module functioned through a major B2B platform, where the handlers subscribed to premium vendor categories to enhance visibility and attract potential buyers. To manage incoming sales leads, the group ran a fully functional call center based in Udupi, employing around 10 staff members--many of whom were reportedly unaware of the illicit nature of the operation. Once orders were confirmed, advance payments were collected in cryptocurrency, which were then routed to the supply module operators after deducting a 10-15 per cent commission. The supply module, in turn, retained a further 10 per cent before disbursing payments to reshippers located in designated countries, who handled the final delivery of the controlled substances. In a calculated move to expand operations, repeat buyers were groomed and recruited as re-shippers or stockists, helping the network grow organically across borders. Multiple such stockists have already been identified by our international counterparts, and actions against them are actively underway, the statement from the Ministry of Home Affairs said. This intricate network showcases the growing convergence of digital platforms, cryptocurrency, and transnational logistics in modern illicit trade--and highlights the importance of global cooperation and intelligence-sharing in combating such operations. With 8 arrests so far, the financial trail involving crypto wallets and hawala channels is under investigation. NCB is also engaging with private sector platforms to counter the proliferation of illegal online pharmacies that openly advertise the sale of controlled medicines. (ANI)
