A mother and her boyfriend have been charged with murder after a 5-month-old boy was found burned to death Tuesday morning inside their Macon home, according to NBC affiliate 41 WMGT in Macon.
Arrested were 28-year-old Jalicia Aquanetta Kent and 30-year-old Quantious Trenard Hodges, WMGT reported.
Authorities initially reported the infant may have slept too close to a space heater overnight, according to reports by news station 13WMAZ.
Officials said the baby was found alone in a room of the home in the 4500 block of Bishop Road with burns all over his body. He was pronounced dead on the scene at 7:12 a.m., according to Chief Bibb County Coroner Leon Jones.
Investigators say the infant was placed in front of the space heater about 10 p.m. Monday and that no one checked on him throughout the night, WGMT reported.
After receiving an emergency call from someone in the home, Bibb County Sheriff’s Office investigators responded, arriving to the scene about 6:30 a.m., along with officials from the state Division of Family & Children Services, 13WMAZ reported.
Also on scene was Assistant Coroner Lonnie Miley, who said officials were questioning three adults who were home at the time.
The sheriff's office later issued a statement saying the child’s mother was there, along with her boyfriend, Hodges, who found the infant, and the boyfriend’s brother, 13WMAZ reported, adding that the mother’s boyfriend was not the father of the child.
All three live at the home, according to reports.
The boyfriend’s brother faces no charges at this time, WGMT reported.
An autopsy was being scheduled to determine the exact cause of death.
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