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Man accused of strangling infant sister
A 21-year-old man in Loudoun County was accused of strangling his infant sister. The child remains in critical condition, according to officials.
LEESBURG, Va. - A 21-year-old man is accused of strangling his infant sister. The baby remains in critical condition.
A shocking crime:
Even seasoned law enforcement says this is a tough case—a baby girl violently strangled, nearly to death. Officials say at this time, she remains in critical condition.
FOX 5 obtained court documents that say the infant was found unresponsive with a white charging cable around her neck.
Police have identified the suspect as her older brother, 21-year-old Alaya Mejia Alvaro. He’s charged with a felony count of strangulation.
Additional charges are expected.
The backstory:
Police say they responded to an apartment in Hancock Place, NE, just after 10 a.m. to assist first responders with a report of an infant not breathing.
When police arrived, Alvaro had already fled the scene.
According to court documents, he contacted a friend for a ride and apparently told the friend he was "playing with his sister and may have killed her."
Dig deeper:
FOX 5 spoke with an attorney, who says the case is precarious at this time as charges could drastically change depending on the outcome of the injured infant.
"The biggest single variable in the incident is whether the child dies," criminal defense attorney and former prosecutor Jeremy Rosenthal said. "If the child dies, then this is a capital case. Virginia does not have the death penalty. If the child lives, then the strangulation could be what’s known as a Class Six felony in Virginia. That carries up to five years in prison. That’s going to be the single biggest issue in the case going forward. Obviously, I think everybody prays for the baby’s recovery."
Alvaro is being held with no bond. His next court date is Nov. 13.