6-year-old Waxahachie boy died from toxic gas; death ruled homicide, authorities say
A 6-year-old boy who had been the subject of an Amber Alert died in August from a toxic gas released by chemicals found in his mother’s minivan, according to a report released Monday by a justice of the peace and Waxahachie police.
Phillip Oliver ‘Ollie” Wiedemann died of toxic effects from hydrogen sulfide, said Ellis County Justice of the Peace Steve Egan. The child’s death has been ruled a homicide.
Ollie and his mother, Candace Harbin, were found dead in the closed vehicle, parked in a Waxahachie parking garage, on Aug. 23. She had been accused of kidnapping him.
A ruling on Harbin’s death was still pending Monday.
Waxahachie is in Ellis County, about 40 miles southeast of Fort Worth.
“Chemicals were found in the vehicle, but I couldn’t tell you exactly what they were,” said Waxahachie police Lt. Marcus Brown on Monday in a telephone interview with the Fort Wort Star-Telegram.
A Dallas hazardous material team was called to the scene and handled the chemicals.
An Amber Alert was issued in August after John Wiedemann reported that his son was missing and the child was in the company of the boy’s mother, from whom he was estranged.
John Wiedemann called Waxahachie police at around 9 a.m. on Aug. 23 and reported that his son and the boy’s mother had disappeared. Police tried to locate the boy and couldn’t find him, and they issued an Amber Alert around 5:20 p.m. on Aug. 23.
Waxahachie police also issued an arrest warrant for Harbin, charging her with kidnapping.
The department posted on Facebook, saying police believed Ollie Wiedemann to be in “imminent danger.” He had last been seen in the 400 block of West Franklin Street in Waxahachie, according to the alert.
Harbin, who did not have legal custody of Ollie, was driving a white 2012 Nissan Quest minivan. It was the minivan where their bodies were found about 6:30 p.m. on Aug. 23.
