Father accused of murdering his infant son

By Ricardo Torres-Cortez

Friday, May 5, 2017 | 2:33 p.m.

Assuan Martinez told police he tried to save his infant son from choking on milk by slapping him and tipping him over.

This week, authorities charged the man in the baby’s death.

Henry Martinez died two days after the incident – just four days shy of turning six months old -- after suffering severe injuries including rib fractures and blunt force to his head and neck.

Assuan Martinez said his son was choking on milk and he attempted to burp him. When Henry didn't react, Assuan slapped him on the face, tipped him upside down and then slapped him on his back, according to a Metro Police arrest report.

Assuan Martinez, 33, was booked on a count of murder. He surrendered into custody Wednesday and is free on bail.

Police allege that aside from the acts Martinez admitted to, he also "forcefully" shook Henry, and soaked him in water when he was unconscious, according to the report.

Officers were dispatched shortly before 11 p.m. on Aug. 3, 2016 to a home in the 10000 block of White Mulberry Drive, near Tropicana Avenue and Hualapai Way, and found an unresponsive child with apparent swelling to his brain.

Medical personnel at Summerlin Pediatrics told investigators that the injuries appeared to be “abusive in nature,” police said. Henry was transported to University Medical Center, where he later died.

Medical examiners since have deemed his death a homicide, police said.

"The child's injuries are extensive, on multiple areas of the body and in protected areas," a forensic examiner wrote, according to the report. "The constellation of the injuries as well as the pattern of the injuries themselves are definitive for child physical abuse."

Martinez told detectives that his son, who he said suffered from acid reflux, was drinking milk from a new bottle with a larger nipple with a “larger flow,” police said.

Henry began “to choke more violently than he has ever before,” so Martinez said he placed him over his shoulder and tried to burp him, and started jumping up and down when it didn’t work, police said.

Two to three minutes passed and the choking worsened, so Martinez put Henry on his side and patted him hard, “really going at his back,” he told police. Assuan Martinez then became “super nervous” when apparent vomit started pouring out of the baby’s nose. He then slapped him on his chest and face a “few times.”

Martinez then called 911 and received CPR instructions. A medic interviewed later told detectives it didn't appear Martinez had attempted CPR.

First responders also described Martinez’s behavior during the incident as odd. He was “nonchalant” and was overheard telling Henry’s mother, who was out of state, over the phone, “the baby’s dead. You need to come home.”

Martinez also didn’t request to ride in the ambulance, police said. In interviews with two medics, detectives found a discrepancy as to whether there was milk in Henry's airway.

A babysitter employed by Henry's family told detectives that the baby was known to suffer from acid reflux, typically during feeding. She said the baby appeared to be OK when she saw him earlier that day.

The murder case was filed in court on Tuesday and a warrant was issued on Wednesday, the same day Martinez posted $250,000 bail with the condition that he surrender his passport, court records show.

He's scheduled to appear in front of a judge Wednesday. A call to Martinez's listed attorney wasn't immediately returned this afternoon.