LAKELAND, Fla. — A 20-year-old Lakeland man is facing first degree murder and aggravated child abuse charges after a 23-month-old in his care was found “unresponsive, without a pulse and lying on the bathroom floor,” according to the Lakeland Police Department.
Police Chief Sam Taylor said during a news conference Monday morning that Bobby Curry Jr. was babysitting while the boy’s mom was at work on March 5.
According to Chief Taylor, Curry and the boy’s mom have been in a relationship for four months and he had been living with them for only two weeks.
During Monday’s news conference, Taylor said Curry told police that he had just given Ezekiel Cotto-Saintfleur a bath when one of their dogs knocked the boy backward, causing him to hit the back of his head against the tub.
However, Taylor said Curry’s story was inconsistent with Cotto-Saintfleur’s injuries, which occurred mainly to the front of his head.
According to officials, Curry said Cotto-Saintfleur began having trouble breathing after he supposedly hit his head against the tub, so Curry placed the baby in his bed to rest.
During that time, Curry was messaging with the boy’s mom on Instagram about his injuries and asking her what to do. At some point, Curry checked on the boy again and found him unresponsive. He then took the boy out of his bed and placed him on the bathroom floor again and began chest compressions, Taylor explained.
Taylor said two and a half hours went by before Curry called 911 after the first signs of distress. However, there were over 60 Instagram messages between Curry and the boy’s mom during that time.
Cotto-Saintfleur was transported to Tampa General Hospital, where he died three days later on March 8. His cause of death was determined to be blunt force trauma.
Chief Taylor said during the news conference that he believes Curry became overwhelmed with babysitting a toddler, plus having two dogs and two ducks inside the home, and lost his temper.
Taylor said Curry does not have a criminal history and urges people to ask for help before reaching that point of frustration.
Taylor also said the baby’s mom is cooperating with law enforcement.
Spectrum News Staff
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