Young couple arrested after killing newborn at California hospital just hours after birth

A young California couple was arrested last Friday after fatally strangling their newborn son just hours after his birth, according to KABC.

Oxnard authorities apprehended David Luna Villa, 21, and his girlfriend Andrea Torralba Camacho, 20, on suspicion of felony assault by means of force resulting in the child's death, following an investigation at St. John's Medical Center. Police had received a call around 8 p.m. regarding a baby that was found in critical condition at the hospital.

"Medical staff was notified that the infant was unresponsive, and despite the efforts of the medical team, the infant succumbed to his injuries," a news releasesaid.

Law enforcement determined that Villa and Camacho had "strangled the victim until he was unconscious." In a statement to police, Camacho admitted that she didn't want baby Diego and that Villa was not the child's father, Sgt. Brandon Ordelheide told the Los Angeles Times.

Ordelheide added that hospital staff had spent 10 hours trying to revive Diego but were unsuccessful in their attempt.

"By the looks of the nurses, they did everything they could to try and revive that kid," he said. "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."

In a statement to KCAL, St. John's expressed remorse over the incident while reminding the public about California's Safe Surrender Law.

"While we deal with tragedies every day, the staff at St. John's Regional Medical Center are devastated by the alleged incident," the statement read. "In the midst of this investigation, it is timely to remind our community of California's Safe Surrender Law wherein: Newborn infants can be dropped off at any safe surrender site such as hospitals, fire stations and police stations, within 72 hours of birth, with no questions asked."

If convicted, both Villa and Camacho could serve 25 years to life in prison. Villa is being held on $5 million bail, while Camacho is being held on $1 million bail.