Indiana – An Indiana man was taken into custody and later charged with murder after allegedly beating his girlfriend’s child to death. The boy’s mom has been charged with neglect in connection to the case.
The 32-year-old man, later identified as Bryce, is being held on a $1,000,005 cash-only bond. He faces charges of murder and interference with the reporting of a crime in connection with the death of the 5-year-old boy, Augustas. The mother, later identified as 23-year-old HaIie, has been charged with neglect of a dependent causing death. She is being held on a $100,000 cash-only bond. First responders were dispatched to the location on the morning of March 2 after receiving a report of an unresponsive child. According to charging documents, the mother found her son around 6:30 a.m. on his bedroom floor.
She reportedly told investigators that her son felt cold to the touch, so she attempted to warm him up with blankets. When that failed, she placed him in a hot shower. Court records indicate that the boy began making noises, but his body went limp, his eyes rolled back, and he became unresponsive again. After approximately an hour had passed, the mother finally called 911. The child was transported to a local hospital before being airlifted to a Illinois hospital, where he died later that night.
An autopsy revealed that the boy suffered fatal head injuries, including multiple contusions on the scalp and bleeding in the brain. His cause of death was determined to be multiple injuries due to assault, a homicide. Investigators uncovered a disturbing history of abuse at the hands of the mother’s boyfriend. The 23-year-old woman told police that he had a pattern of punishing her son in cruel ways, often for perceived misbehavior. She said he made the child take a cold shower the night before his death because he believed the boy was being disrespectful.
She later found her son on the bathroom floor in a position that indicated he had been struck. She described him as visibly shaken and crying. When she confronted the 32-year-old man, telling him not to hit her son anymore, he allegedly responded that ‘the child is not going to bite him’ and forced the child to finish the cold shower. During an initial interview with investigators, the child’s mom initially told investigators that she did not believe her partner would injured her child, saying the boy really looked up to the 32-year-old man.
A neighbor who lived in the apartment above reported hearing a child’s voice pleading, “No, please stop, I will be a good boy.” The neighbor also described hearing sounds of thrashing in the water, followed by silence. No further noises were heard until the ambulance arrived about an hour later. The mother admitted to police that the defendant had taken her phone when she first attempted to call 911. She said he did not allow her to seek help for roughly an hour.
She also disclosed that he had been physically, se-ually, and mentally abusing her. She described him as jealous of her son and resentful when she showed the boy affection. While the 23-year-old woman is facing charges for neglect, she told investigators she feared her boyfriend due to his history of abuse. The defendant is scheduled to appear in court for his initial hearing on Tuesday, March 11. The mother was initially placed on a 48-hour hold before being formally charged on Friday.