A young father allegedly in the U.S. illegally is in custody and accused of beating his 2-month-old daughter to death.
Marlon Rabanales-Pretzantzin, 20, was arrested Wednesday and charged with second-degree murder in the death of his infant daughter, according to the Nassau County Police Department.
According to detectives, officers responded to an Inwood home for a report of a choking 2-month-old girl, identified as Liseyda Rabanales Barrios, just after 10:30 a.m. March 7.
The victim was transported to a hospital and later transferred to a different hospital, where she died.
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Officials said an investigation revealed the infant was the victim of an assault that caused her death. Police said the child had abrasions and broken bones, among other injuries.
During a press briefing shared by PIX11, Nassau County Police Detective Capt. Stephen Fitzpatrick said Rabanales-Pretzantzin admitted to abusing his baby.
“He admitted to us what had happened with the baby, how he abused it physically, how he felt the child wasn’t his and how he did not respect or want that child,” Fitzpatrick said. “He hit the child several times around the head and face. He threw the child on the ground.”
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Officials determined Rabanales-Pretzantzin lived at the home with the 20-year-old mother of his children.
A 1-year-old boy was also removed from the home and transported to a hospital for evaluation for any injuries.
Investigators believe the mother was not involved in the abuse of the children.
Rabanales-Pretzantzin was arraigned in Nassau County Court Thursday and held without bail.
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Nassau County Police Commissioner Patrick Ryder added that Rabanales-Pretzantzin is originally from Guatemala and entered the United States at the border in El Paso, Texas.
“As he came in, catch and release took his information and let him into America,” Ryder said. “The individual will answer to his crimes here in Nassau County. After he’s done with his sentencing, then there will be a determination of deportation or being held here. But there will be an immediate detainer put on him once he walks into the Nassau County Jail so he will never be released from our jails.”
Fox News Digital reached out to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement for comment but did not immediately receive a response.
