Chicago Man Allegedly Beat, Stomped 21-Month-Old Girl to Death
A 22-year-old Chicago man was arrested on Tuesday for allegedly beating and stomping a 21-month-old baby to death, PEOPLE confirms.
A police statement obtained by PEOPLE identifies the alleged killer as Uriel Vega, who has been charged with one count of first-degree murder for the death of Raiylana Vasquez.
Police have yet to comment on a possible motive.
Vega — who is the child’s mother’s boyfriend, but not Raiylana’s father — was minding the child at the time of her death, according to police.
Police officers were called to the home Vega shares with the girl’s mother just before 11:30 a.m. on Tuesday, finding Raiylana unresponsive with “obvious” signs of trauma, the statement alleges.
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“The investigation revealed that the victim died from blunt force trauma caused by Vega,” reads the statement. A prosecution source tells PEOPLE that, in addition to beating the child, Vega allegedly stomped on the baby’s stomach.
Raiylana was rushed to Holy Cross Hospital and pronounced dead within one hour of arrival, according to the statement.
An autopsy performed Wednesday found the child had died of multiple injuries due to child abuse and her death was ruled a homicide, according to police.
Alissandra Calderon, a spokeswoman for the Illinois Department of Children and Family Services, tells PEOPLE that agency is investigating Vega for previous allegations of abuse and neglect, and that the child’s mother was indicted on neglect charges 10 months ago. She would not provide the mother’s name or discuss the allegations that led to the indictment.
Vega is being held without bond and does not have legal representation at this time, according to police.
A GoFundMe page has been established to help pay for Raiylana’s funeral.
