Police have charged two people with murder two years after 12-year-old Tiffani Scholten's "extremely emaciated" body was found on the Gold Coast.
A "heart-wrenching" investigation into the April 2022 death found Tiffani received insufficient care, police said, with a 37-year-old man and a 36-year-old woman arrested on Tuesday.
Tiffani had medical issues including Rett Syndrome, a rare genetic condition that affects brain development in girls.
"The evidence that they gained showed that the care for this child was insufficient and directly related to her death," Detective Inspector Paul Fletcher told reporters on Tuesday.
Police said the man and woman were known to the child.
Det Insp Fletcher said the circumstances surrounding the case were "particularly confronting".
Emergency services had responded to a call about 8.15pm on April 18, 2022, that a child was not breathing at a Coomera residence.
"Queensland Ambulance Service attended the address and was confronted with an extremely emaciated child that unfortunately had passed away," Det Insp Fletcher said.
"As you can imagine, it was a very confronting scene when they got to the address for both the ambulance officers and police.
"I think anything that involves a child is always traumatic for people to deal with no matter what their profession."
Police launched Operation Uniform Zoysia to investigate Tiffani's death.
"The investigation into the death of this young girl has been one of the most heart-wrenching and complex we’ve had to conduct," Det Insp Fletcher said in a statement on Tuesday.
"From the moment the investigation commenced, our priority has been to seek justice for this innocent child.
“It is deeply distressing to investigate the death of any child, but the circumstances surrounding this case have been particularly confronting for our officers."
Det Insp Fletcher said there were a "number of complexities" in the more than two-year investigation including getting background on Tiffani's medical issues.
He said detectives had left no stone unturned on a case that had also impacted the Gold Coast community.
"We understand the grief and pain this has caused the community, and we hope these arrests bring some level of comfort to those who knew and loved this young girl," he said.
"While nothing can undo the tragic loss of life, we are committed to ensuring justice is served.”
The man and woman's matter appeared in Southport Magistrates Court on Tuesday and was adjourned until November 8, with the pair remanded in custody.
