A Florida couple has been arrested and charged with aggravated manslaughter of a child and neglect of a child in connection with the death of their seven-week-old infant daughter. Robert Lee Ingram Jr., 22, and Gracie Jai Tellez, 20, were taken into custody by U.S. Marshals in Jacksonville, according to an announcement from the Marshals Service.
Prosecutors allege that the parents shook their infant daughter to death in their Hollywood home last October. The couple initially told investigators that their daughter had been fed and placed in her bassinet for a nap before being found unresponsive. However, an affidavit obtained by Local10 reports that forensic analysis of their phones revealed activity inconsistent with their statements.
According to the affidavit, Ingram's phone was used to play Call of Duty until 11:49 a.m. on October 14, and Tellez's phone was used for the game until 11:52 a.m. The 911 call reporting the infant unresponsive was placed at approximately 11:53 a.m. Investigators found the parents' claims that their phones were only used for FaceTime as makeshift baby monitors to be untruthful. Ingram allegedly also played Call of Duty for several hours overnight before the infant's death.
The infant was rushed to Joe DiMaggio Children's Hospital, where doctors found she had suffered a traumatic brain injury, skull fractures, and retinal hemorrhaging and detachment. Medical specialists determined these injuries were consistent with non-accidental head trauma caused by violent shaking. The Broward County Medical Examiner ruled the infant's death a homicide due to complications from blunt head trauma.
The child was declared brain dead on October 18 and died after life support was removed four days later. Investigators stated that the size and layout of the parents' home would have made it apparent what caused the injuries. During interviews and a search of their residence, detectives gathered information that contradicted the parents' initial accounts of the events.
Ingram reportedly provided differing versions of what occurred on the day of the infant's death, including the timing of feeding and when the baby was placed in the bassinet. He allegedly reenacted the events, providing yet another version of the timeline.
Following the investigation by the Hollywood Police Department, arrest warrants were issued for Tellez and Ingram on July 27. The couple had reportedly left Broward County for Jacksonville, where they were apprehended by a Florida Caribbean Regional Fugitive Task Force team. They were extradited to Broward County and are being held without bond. During their initial court appearance, both parents invoked their right to remain silent and were ordered to have no contact with children.