COLERAIN TWP., Ohio — A man initially arrested on charges of endangering children and assault could now face a murder charge, after the 2-year-old boy he's accused of abusing has died.
On August 2, Colerain Township police said they responded to a home on Roppelt Drive after a report of a child who was not breathing; the boy was taken to Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center with multiple injuries police said were consistent with abuse.
Following that, police arrested 23-year-old Sebastian De La Cruz Macal and charged him with endangering children and felonious assault.
On Monday, the Hamilton County Coroner's Office announced that 2-year-old Elan Eris Bautista Aguilera died from his injuries on Saturday, August 15. The boy's manner of death is listed as a homicide on the coroner's report.
According to court documents, Macal told police that, while he was watching the child, he "admitted to striking the child on the buttocks, causing visible finger marks."
Those court documents also say when the boy was taken to Cincinnati Children's Hospital, he was diagnosed "with a traumatic brain injury."
During Macal's arraignment on August 4, his defense attorney said he also has a 5-year-old child for whom he cares. The attorney also told the judge that her client maintains the 2-year-old boy accidentally fell; the attorney pointed out the allegations made about Macal were unrelated to the child's brain injury.
Macal's defense attorney also pointed out that Macal is the one who contacted 911 when the boy became unresponsive.
Prosecutors said they did not have more information to add than what the court documents provided.
Macal is currently being held in the Hamilton County Justice Center on a $505,000 bond for the charges he faced before the boy's death.
