A 39-year-old Arizona man has been charged with sexually abusing and killing his infant daughter, Phoenix police told KPHO.
Duryea Bennett was arrested after his 1-month-old daughter Natalyah, who has a twin sister, was rushed to a Phoenix hospital on Wednesday afternoon, Sergeant Trent Crump told the station. She died the next day.
Paramedics arrived at the baby's home after she stopped breathing while Bennett was giving her a bath, according to Bennett's 14-year-old son who called 911. At the hospital doctors found signs of abuse on the infant, including a fracture to the skull, bite marts, multiple bruises and other injuries that were consistent with a sexual assault, KPHO reported.
Police said Bennett was the only adult in the house, which was filled with seven children ranging from 1 month to 14 years old. The twin sister was not harmed.
"None of the other children showed signs of abuse however the investigation is ongoing," Crump told AZFamily.
Bennett later admitted to police he bit his daughter in attempt to revive her. He also said he hit her several times on the back and stomach to stop her from choking on milk.
"I was bathing the child. The child started choking or hyperventilating like she was having seizure maybe from me feeding her too much milk," Bennett said in court on Thursday. "And I panicked. I didn't know anything about CPR so I started to use my hands like you do on a grown person like maybe hitting on her chest too hard, spanking her on the butt."
It was the first time he was left alone with his twin daughters, Bennett told investigators.
Other family members expressed confusion over the allegations against the father.
"[Bennett] was always loving and caring," JohnnieMae Stevenson, the infant's aunt, told KPHO. "So it would be a shocker if something did come and suspect that he did it."
Bennett was ordered held on $1 million bail after he was charged with murder and child abuse.
