Couple Allegedly Suffocated Day-Old Baby To Death In Hospital

One day after baby Diego was born, nurses found the child unresponsive and with serious, unexplained injuries. Now, his mother and her boyfriend are accused of intentionally causing the infant's death.

Andrea Torralba Camacho, 20 and David Luna Villa, 21, were arrested on Friday on suspicion of assault of a child by means of force resulting in the child’s death. Police had been called to the St. John’s Regional Medical Center in Oxnard, California just before 8 a.m. after finding a newborn in critical condition.

When questioned, Camacho and Villa told police they had suffocated the child until he was unconscious, according to Oxnard Police Sgt. Brandon Ordelheid. Camacho allegedly said the child was unwanted. 

Doctors attempted to revive the child for 10 hours but were unsuccessful. The baby died that night.

“By the looks of the nurses, they did everything they could to try and revive that kid,” said Ordelheid, according to The Los Angeles Times. “I can tell you this is probably one of the worst things these detectives can go through, is something like this, but we’re still trying to figure out what happened.”

Camacho and Villa will next appear in court on Tuesday. Their bail has been set at $1 million. Should they be found guilty, they potentially face 25 years in prison, according to ABC News.

In a statement given to CBS Los Angeles, the hospital stressed the importance of California’s Safe Surrender Law, by which it is legal or a baby up to three days old to be anonymously surrendered at sites such as hospitals and fire stations. Additional information about Safe Surrender sites is available by telephone at (877) 222-9723.

The case remains under investigation. Anyone with information is being urged to contact Det. Juan Morales at 805-385-3922. Tipsters can remain anonymous by calling the Ventura County Crime Stoppers at 800-222-8477.