Carteret Man 'In A Rage' When He Critically Injured Newborn Son: Cops

CARTERET, NJ — A Carteret man accused of attempted murder while caring for his newborn son told authorities he was "in a rage" the day the baby was injured and aggressively burped him by hitting him on the back. He also told authorities he shook the baby, police documents reveal.

The baby also fell off the bed while under his father's care and suffered broken ribs, authorities said.

Ezekiel Crespo, 20, told authorities he was alone in the house caring for his six-week-old son on Jan. 21 while the boy's mother was at work.

The baby was taken to Saint Peters Hospital for treatment, where he was in critical condition for multiple days afterwards. However, the baby survived and is continuing to recover, MyCentralJersey reported this week.

According to police, Crespo was alone with the newborn in a house on Clauss Street when he struck the baby aggressively on the back multiple times. He told authorities he was trying to burp the baby. Additionally, the baby fell from the bed onto the floor, bruising his lip, cheeks, face and the back of his skull, as well as fracturing a rib, according to an affidavit on the case released Wednesday by the Middlesex County Prosecutor.

According to the affidavit, Crespo told police he fell asleep with the baby on the bed, which resulted in the baby "falling onto the ground face first."

"The defendant stated he woke up to the sound of a thud and discovered the victim on the floor in between the bed and the bassinet," police said. Crespo said he then called his father, who came to the home and the two called 911, authorities said.

The baby's mother told police she received a text message from Crespo that day telling her "he doesn't deserve children." After sending that text, Crespo then called her, telling her the baby fell and texted her a photo of the baby's "busted" lip and bruise, she told police.

Crespo's father told police he received a similar phone call from Crespo after the baby fell, telling him "he can't do it anymore." The baby's grandmother was also called and she too left work, went to the home on Clauss Street and found the newborn "crying a lot and with bruising on his face and head."

Surveillance footage was found inside the home, which captured an audio recording of the baby "crying progressively along with hitting sounds," read the affidavit.

The new father later told police he was "in a rage" and had "aggressively burped the baby by striking his back multiple times," and he also admitted he shook the newborn.

Doctors told police the baby had multiple brain bleeds and he showed "limited brain activity" in the hospital. He had swelling to the back right of his head, bruising and swelling to his face and lip, and compression fractures to his ribs which were not consistent with a fall from a bed."

Crespo was charged with first-degree attempted murder and second-degree child endangerment. He is currently being held at the Middlesex County jail in North Brunswick.

This criminal investigation was done by Carteret Police Detective William Cox and Detective Olivia Ankudowicz of the Middlesex County Prosecutor’s Office. Anyone with information is encouraged to contact Detective Cox at 732-745-3652, or Detective Ankudowicz at 732-745-8083.

Initial Patch report: NJ Man Charged With Attempted Murder Of Newborn Son (Jan. 24)

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