A toddler has died after police say the man who was supposed to look after him beat him to death.
Police say Duarte Jeremiah Fayne beat 19-month-old Jasper so badly his brain swelled.
The toddler’s mom, Pamela Walker, said she, her two young sons and Fayne, her boyfriend, moved from Denver to Las Vegas to start a new life. She didn’t know her younger son’s life would end so brutally.
“I’m feeling saddened,” said Walker as she wiped the tears from her eyes and struggled to speak through her tears.
“I don’t know how to feel. I’m just so numb, devastated,” Walker said.
Jasper died last Friday. Police confirmed he was beaten to death.
Walker wonders, could she have saved him?
“How did he get hurt? Why wasn’t I there?” Walker asked.
Walker, overwhelmed by grief and guilt, could not continue the interview.
Serwin Felonia, who is married to Walker’s cousin, said the family is heartbroken.
“Family is devastated,” Felonia said. “They’re going through a tough time right now.”
According to the arrest report, Fayne severely beat Walker's little boy, fracturing his skull and causing his brain to swell.
Police said the toddler’s 5-year-old brother told police Fayne hit the toddler on the head and then threw him on the bed. The 5-year-old, at first, thought his little brother was dead. But the little boy was still breathing.
Fayne insisted he didn’t do it, instead blaming Walker.
“I think it’s BS. I’ve always known her as being a loving person to her children. That’s who she is,” Felonia said.
According to the report, Walker told her 5-year-old not to tell police what happened. Felonia said he's not sure if that is true.
Fayne has been charged with murder in the child's death. He had been charged with attempted murder before the child died.
