See the update at the end of this post about today's scheduled arraignment of Cheyenne Mateo Fuimaono on murder and child assault charges.
ORIGINAL POST, DEC. 4, 7:01 A.M.: When, according to the Buena Park Police Department, Cheyenne Mateo Fuimaono admitted to officers he had inflicted injuries to an 18-month-old boy clinging to life at Children's Hospital of Orange County (CHOC) Friday afternoon, he was arrested on suspicion on attempted murder.
The Orange County Coroner announced Saturday the baby died from his injuries, and the charge against the Buena Park 21-year-old was upgraded to murder.
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Police received a call just before 1:30 p.m. Friday about an 18-month-old baby who was not breathing at a residence in the 6800 block of San Benito Way, according to a statement from the Buena Park agency's spokesman, Corporal Andy Luong.
Officer's arrived to find the mother's boyfriend, who was caring for the child, trying to apply CPR with the instructions of an emergency dispatcher, Luong said. Officers took over the life-saving until paramedics arrived and took the child, who was still unresponsive and not breathing to a local hospital.
Hospital staff managed to revive the child, who was breathing on his own before being transferred to CHOC, where Orange County Social Services at the hospital informed police about “suspicious bruises” on the boy, Luong said.
Officers were told at CHOC the boy had been placed on life support and had been declared brain-dead. Detectives say Fuimaono later admitted to inflicting the injuries that contributed to the boy's deteriorating condition, according to Luong.
After the child's death, Fuimaono was booked into the Buena Park city jail pending arraignment.
UPDATE, DEC. 28, 10:09 A.M.: Cheyenne Mateo
Fuimaono faces a continued arraignment hearing on felony counts of first
degree murder and assault on a child with force likely to produce great
bodily injury resulting in death that could send him to prison for 25 years to life with a conviction, according to the Orange County District Attorney's office (OCDA).
The 21-year-old remains behind bars in lieu of
$1 million bail.
The OCDA identifies the 18-month-old victim as Malik Perez, who had unusual marks and discolorations on him, including bite marks on the arm and bruising on his neck, according to CHOC doctors
who alerted the Buena Park Police Department.
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OC Weekly Editor-in-Chief Matt Coker has been engaging, enraging and entertaining readers of newspapers, magazines and websites for decades. He spent the first 13 years of his career in journalism at daily newspapers before “graduating” to OC Weekly in 1995 as the alternative newsweekly’s first calendar editor.