Man arrested for death of infant son who had injuries associated with ‘abusive head trauma’

MAGNA, Utah (ABC4) — A man was arrested on Friday, a few days after his infant son died in the hospital from several injuries said to be associated with “abusive head trauma,” according to arrest documents.

Armando Valenzuela, 25, was arrested on one count of murder, a first-degree felony; and one count of aggravated child abuse — intentionally or knowingly, a second-degree felony. He was arrested a week after he initially called 911 to report that his son wasn’t breathing.

Valenzuela’s 1-month-old son was taken to the hospital on March 14, after the suspect called first responders to report that his son went limp and stopped breathing after he picked the child up. A few hours before that call, the child was taken to a pediatrician appointment and was said to be “alert.”

While at the hospital, arrest documents said medical professionals found several injuries — including retinal hemorrhaging, healed and acute rib fractures, and intracranial hemorrhages — that were said to be “most consistent with abusive head trauma.”

“They are not the result of benign typical infant handling and are not explained by an underlying genetic or hematologic condition,” documents said of the infant’s injuries.

The child’s mother said the baby was fine when she left the home just before 8 p.m. on March 14, and said the baby would “typically only go into his loud screams when he was alone in the bedroom with [Valenzuela],” arrest documents said.

Valenzuela said the baby was “screaming extremely loud” before the child “went limp” and Valenzuela called 911. Valenzuela performed CPR on the child until first responders arrived.

When talking with police, Valenzuela said he believed nurses at the hospital had handled his son roughly, and said some of the child’s injuries may have come from the doctor pulling the baby out during a C-section.

After being told about the child’s brain hemorrhaging and bleeding — and being told that those injuries are not attributed to medical professionals’ handling of the child — Valenzuela “continued to deny doing anything to [the child], except picking him up.”

The child died at the hospital on March 17, and Valenzuela was taken into custody on March 21.