BELLFLOWER (CBSLA) – One week after an 8-month-old girl was found dead behind a Bellflower mortuary, her father, a person of interest in her death, surrendered to authorities at the U.S.-Mexico border.

Police had been searching for 22-year-old Alexander Echeverria after his daughter Alexia Rose Echeverria was found dead last Monday at 10:35 a.m. behind the mortuary in the 10300 block of Alondra Boulevard.

Investigators believe the girl died in Sacramento and the investigation was handed over to the Sacramento County Sheriff’s Department.

The child’s mother, Karla Alvarado, told reporters that Echeverria was playing with his daughter, throwing her into the air, when he slipped and she fell and was unresponsive.

According to Alvarado, Echeverria told a family member that he drove to the hospital first but instead decided to drive south — 400 miles away to Bellflower where his mother lives.

“He said he got scared and he drove to the hospital, but he never went in because he thought nobody was going to believe him that it was an accident,” said Alvarado.

“He just left her there like she was trash or something,” Alvarado said. “I just want them to find him. I want to know exactly how my baby passed away, why he left her there, why he couldn’t face the consequences.”

According to Alvarado, Echeverria’s family lives close to where Alexia was found.