Exclusive: Mother of toddler who drowned at an Orlando resort wants fencing around ponds

ORLANDO, Fla. — The body of three-year-old Rakim Akbari was found in a pond at the Sheraton Vistana Resort Villas in Orlando. Rakim’s mother spoke exclusively with Action News Jax.

Tarina Akbari said her son had been on vacation with his father since Monday. She said Rakim apparently snuck out of their room early in the morning while his dad was asleep.

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“My ex-husband said he woke up around 9 a..m. to take Rakim to the bathroom. He walked around the room looking for him, and he eventually saw the front door was cracked open,” Akbari said.

She said the search team was quick to help after the initial 911 call with helicopters and diving teams. Akbari said the search ended when the first responder found Rakim’s body at the resort’s nearby pond.

Read: Boy, 3, found dead in body of water at Orange County resort was from Jacksonville

In a social media post, the Orange County Sheriff’s Office said in part:

“Our detectives are still looking into how this tragedy occurred. We are grieving his loss, and our prayers are with his family.”

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Tarina Akbari said the family believed her son may have been on the spectrum, however, she said he was never diagnosed with autism.

Akbari said after she heals, she plans on creating a nonprofit organization that will advocate for regulations requiring fences around all bodies of water near homes, parks, hotels, and more. She believes all toddlers and kids love water, whether they are living with autism or not, and drowning deaths are preventable with secured fencing.

“I never thought in a million years that they’d be pulling my baby’s body out of a pond. He was so sweet and loved water. When he was going to come back, I wanted to put him in a swimming class,” Akbari said.

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Rakim Akbari’s body is expected to be sent back to Jacksonville Friday evening and a funeral has not been confirmed yet.

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