2-Year-Old Pennsylvania Boy Dead After Being Beaten, Sexually Abused By Mother's Boyfriend

A 2-year-old boy from Pennsylvania was allegedly beaten by his mother's boyfriend and succumbed to his injuries. Police said that the child was found unresponsive last month at a home on Fifth Avenue in New Kensington, Pittsburgh.

The child was hospitalized and was receiving treatment but died due to severe injuries. The mother's boyfriend, identified as Keith Lilly Jr., was arrested after the baby was found unresponsive and was charged with aggravated assault and endangering the welfare of children. More charges against the accused are pending, local media said. Lilly will go in front of a judge on May 7.

During an investigation, authorities found that the mother's boyfriend attacked the child, leaving him with a fractured skull, a brain bleed, significant bruising, bodily injuries to the eyes and mouth, other fractures in the process of healing and indications of past sexual abuse.

However, during the arrest, Lilly told police that the child hurt himself falling off a couch. Doctors at the hospital confirmed that the baby had been the victim of physical abuse on more than one occasion. The abuse caused substantial pain and the child’s injuries were life-threatening. The cause and manner of death are yet to be revealed.

People in New Kensington took a moment on Friday to pay their respects to the victim.

Representational image of a man in handcuffs.

In a similar incident, an Indiana man was charged with murder in connection with the death of his girlfriend’s 5-year-old son. Authorities said that the accused told the responding officers that the victim woke from sleep vomiting. He then placed the child in the bathtub where he became unconscious.

The investigators, however, noticed bruising and bite marks on the victim’s body. The child's body was taken for autopsy and it was revealed that the victim died from blunt force trauma to his torso and head. The autopsy also revealed that the boy’s lung was ruptured and that serious injuries were inflicted on the boy an hour before his death.

Michael J. Tunstall, 26, was arrested and charged with one count each of murder and aggravated battery. He was held at the Lake County Jail without bail.