Phoenix Police: Child Bent in Half by Father Dies

Phoenix Police: Child Bent in Half by Father Dies
Robert Resendiz (Maricopa County Sheriff's Office)
Epoch Newsroom
12/26/2017
Updated:
12/26/2017

A child who was allegedly bent in half by his father has died, according to media reports on Tuesday, Dec. 26.

Robert Resendiz, of Phoenix, told police that he pressed his six-month-old son’s legs over his head before the child went “limp,” KNPX-TV reported. On Tuesday, police announced that the boy died.

He allegedly told police that he did it to get his son to stop crying. He also said that he bit his son twice “out of frustration,” officials said.

According to court documents, Resendiz, 30, called 911 at 12:45 p.m. on Dec. 19, after telling a police dispatcher that he had woken up to find the child “unresponsive and not breathing,” AzFamily.com reported. He was arrested on that day.

“Upon examination, doctors observed the victim had a grade 4 liver laceration, a left lateral wrist fracture, a laceration of the pancreas, and pattern bruising to the right thigh,” a probable cause for his arrest statement said.

A judge set his bond at $250,000.

Additional charges against Resendiz are pending. He’s slated to appear in court on Wednesday.

The baby’s mom told police that her son was “awake and alert” when she went out to work that morning. The mother began texting Resendiz around 9:45 a.m. “to ensure he was properly caring for their son.”

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