Chesterfield toddler dies in unattended hot car. His father killed himself afterward.

MIDLOTHIAN — Police in Chesterfield County are investigating the death of a toddler left alone in a hot car for several hours Tuesday and the subsequent suicide of the child's father after making the discovery.

According to police reports, the department began receiving calls shortly before noon Tuesday that an 18-month-old boy had died after being left unattended in a car. It was not immediately known how long the child was in the car or where the car had been.

Soon after those calls were sent, police began receiving more calls that a man in the 14100 block of Aldengate Road was threatening to kill himself over the child's death. When police responded, they found the child in the house and the man dead of a self-inflicted gunshot wound in some woods behind the residence.

"At this point, the investigation indicates the father accidentally left the child in the vehicle for several hours," Chesterfield Police said in a statement. "When the father discovered the child deceased in the vehicle, he returned home and took the child inside the residence. He then exited the residence and shot himself."

The police report did not indicate anyone else was involved.

An investigation into the incident is ongoing.

This article originally appeared on The Progress-Index: Virginia father commits suicide after child dies unattended in hot car