Police have accused parents in Homestead, Florida, of murdering their six-month-old daughter.
Nathan Richard Allen and Arnelle Arnelia Floyd, both 24 years old, brought their child to the Homestead Hospital in a state of cardiac arrest on Sunday, Local 10 reported. Police said doctors found signs of severe child abuse and no pulse.
The child, Nalani Adalee Allen, was pronounced dead less than an hour after being brought to the hospital, according to the report.
Following an investigation, Miami-Dade police arrested Allen and Floyd on Wednesday. The two are facing first-degree murder charges, the report states.
Police said the baby girl had “several fractured ribs in different stages of healing and multiple bruises” around her torso.
The medical examiner conducted an autopsy on Tuesday, which reportedly revealed “numerous fresh contusions, internal bleeding, large lacerations to internal organs, and blunt force injuries.”
“An associate medical examiner declared Nalani’s cause of death a homicide,” according to the report.
Allen and Floyd told detectives during an initial interview on Sunday that the baby was healthy and had no history of injuries, according to the report. Floyd said she did not know why her daughter died, police said.
In a timeline provided to police, Floyd said she fed Nalani at approximately 10:00 p.m. on Saturday before the three of them went to sleep. Floyd told police she went to a beauty appointment at 8:00 a.m. the next day. Allen called her at around 10:45 a.m. about the baby’s health, according to the report.
“Floyd stated she then returned home and observed Allen exiting their residence holding the unresponsive victim,” the report states. “Floyd stated they then responded to the emergency room.”
Allen told detectives he fed the baby at 10:00 a.m., went to wash the dishes, and checked on the baby an hour later to find her “lethargic.” Allen told detectives the child was healthy but “would often cry for long periods of time.”
When police executed a search warrant of the home, they found it in “disarray” and found several fist-sized holes in the walls and fist-sized dents in the refrigerator door, according to the report.
Police found there had been multiple reports of domestic violence at the home.
The baby had last seen her pediatrician on Friday, according to police. The pediatrician told investigators she had not shown any signs of injury, although she was underweight.
As of Thursday afternoon, Floyd and Allen were being held without bond in the Turner Guilford Knight Correctional Center, according to the report.