Report: 8-month-old baby left in storage room dies, couple charged in death
LAS CRUCES, New Mexico -- A Doña Ana couple was charged with child abuse in connection to the death of their 8-month-old boy who was left inside a storage room for the night, according to the Las Cruces Sun-News.
Brianna Garcia, 21, and Jasper Garcia-Montaño, 27, were arrested Saturday.
According to the Sun-News, their child, Germiah had been buckled into an "infant-only seat" on the night of July 8. The Sun-News reports that Garcia-Montaño told deputies he gave Germiah a bottle at 8 a.m., and would later go back to sleep. The couple wouldn't wake until about 1 p.m. on July 9.
According to the Doña Ana County Sheriff's Office, deputies were called out to the home on the 600 Block of Thorpe Road around 2 p.m. on July 9 in reference to a CPR in progress on a child.
Officials say the child was transported to a local hospital where the boy was pronounced dead by medical professionals.
There are two other children who lived in the home. They were turned over to the Children Youth and Families Department.
The 8-month-old's body was sent for an autopsy in Albuquerque, at the state's Medical Investigators office, according to DASO.
"This is an ongoing and complex investigation, and charges could be added or amended at a later time," said officials in a news release.