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Boy, 4, Is Found Dead and Badly Bruised in His Brooklyn Home


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By ANAHAD O’CONNOR and KAREN ZRAICK
Published: October 23, 2009

A 4-year-old boy, his body severely bruised, was found dead Friday afternoon at his family’s apartment in Crown Heights, Brooklyn, and the police were investigating the possibility that he had been fatally beaten, the authorities said.
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Christian Hansen for The New York Times

Jayden Lenescar in an undated family photograph. He died Friday of cardiac arrest.

The boy, identified as Jayden Lenescar, was found unconscious by his mother just before 2:30 p.m. in the living room of their apartment on Eastern Parkway, law enforcement officials said. Police officers and paramedics arrived minutes later and frantically worked to resuscitate the boy as they carried him from the building on a stretcher, his mother following steps behind and wailing, “Lord, no, don’t let my baby die!” according to a neighbor, Anna Gilliam, 49.

Jayden, in cardiac arrest, was taken by ambulance to Kings County Hospital Center, where he was pronounced dead on arrival at 2:50 pm.

The precise cause of death had not been determined Friday night, but police officials said that the child had significant bruising on his body and that the death was being “viewed as suspicious.”

Detectives spoke with the boy’s mother at the station house Friday evening. A law enforcement official said detectives do not believe that the boy’s father was involved.

An official at the city’s Administration for Children’s Services said the agency was investigating the death.

Residents of the apartment building described the family as quiet and said they had never seen any sign that Jayden could be in danger.

“They were nice people,” Ms. Gilliam said. “I never heard anything bad about them.”

She added, “I said a prayer.”

Martine Lenescar, 26, a home health attendant and sister of Jayden’s father, Mackenzie Lenescar, said Jayden had always been a happy child.

“He was healthy,” she said. “I saw him two weeks ago and he was fine, he was very happy. He was calling me, ‘Auntie, Auntie,’ ” and asking for his favorite snack, chicken wings, she said.

Ms. Lenescar said she had never seen any bruises on Jayden.

Another aunt, Marie Helesca, said: “He was a really good boy. Him and my son were like best friends. I don’t know how I’m going to tell my son that.”

Asked about the suspicions surrounding Jayden’s death, she said, “His mom didn’t beat him.”

Ms. Helesca, 29, another sister of Mr. Lenescar’s, said Jayden lived with his mother, Mayni, and grandmother on Eastern Parkway during the week and stayed with his father and other relatives around the corner on President Street on weekends. She said her brother and Jayden’s mother had a healthy relationship.

Another relative, Karl Henry, 25, said he was shocked by reports of bruises on Jayden’s body, saying there had been no sign of mistreatment. ”We’re not a family that mistreats our kids,” he said.

As night fell, Jayden’s paternal grandmother arrived at the Eastern Parkway building from the hospital and was overcome with grief. Low moans built to sobs as she approached the building, which was cordoned off with crime scene tape.

Reaching the door, she became hysterical, and crying out in Haitian Creole, collapsed to the ground. Neighbors struggled to lift her up, but she went limp again.

“Lord, why?” she said. “No, no, my baby.”

Al Baker contributed reporting."

besides the bruises- the whole part about her finding him unconcious at 2 30 am is suspicious- was he in bed? if so - i dont know too many moms who do mirror under the nose checks on their sleeping 4 yr. olds- i'd assume him peacefully sleeping and would not had been alarmed until wake up time

Evvy said:

article says 2:30 pm...that is in the afternoon...even weirder...

Evvy said:

I think the police suspect the mom as she was questioned. Something is not right.

RIP little angel

kimrachell said:

How many pages back did you go to pull this thread back from the grave???

thats bullshit they know exactly what happened to that boy. SOMEBODY beat the hell out of that boy and they know who did it. I don't buy that "he was all of a sudden found at 2:30pm unconscious"...bullshit. Somebody needs to fry for this bullshit. I don't have any kids, but I love my little godson who's 3. I know if anybody laid a hand on him to hurt him, let alone cause his death, I would be fit to kill.