NEW YORK—Police in New York City say they’re investigating the death of a 6-year-old boy who was found with multiple bruises and a head injury.
Police say officers responded to a report of an unconscious boy in Harlem on Monday afternoon. They say they were told the child was taken to a hospital by his mother, where he was later declared dead.
Police say the boy, identified as Zymere Perkins, had bruises throughout his body.
Police say the boy’s mother, Geraldine Perkins, and her boyfriend, Rysheim Smith, have been arrested.
Smith tells the New York Daily News he denies playing a role in the boy’s death.
The newspaper says Perkins became hostile when she saw cameras and said “That’s my baby.”
It wasn’t immediately known if Perkins and Smith have attorneys.
“It was just bruises on top of bruises. It was all bruises,” Joanne Martinez, a neighbor, told CBS. “It was all bruises.”
CBS reported that sources said that on early Monday, Zymere was struck repeatedly with a broomstick by Smith before he was held underwater in the shower until he lost consciousness.
Other neighbors said police were called on several occasions.
“It’s been multiple times that they’ve been here…this could have been prevented,” Maggie Disc told the station.
Mayor Bill de Blasio was questioned about the case, but he wouldn’t respond. “What I want to know is if agencies were involved with this child — whether it’s NYPD, Department of Education, ACS — I want to know what happened and why,” the mayor said.
Epoch Times contributed to this report.
