Burgettstown man faces homicide charges, accused of beating 3-year-old boy who later died
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Police have filed homicide charges against a Burgettstown man in connection with the alleged beating death of a 3-year-old boy in Coraopolis.
Aiden Lombardi was pronounced dead late Wednesday night, according to a report from the Allegheny County Medical Examiner’s Office. The office indicated he died from head trauma, and the death was ruled a homicide.
Tyler Scott Mason, 25, was initially charged with aggravated assault and child endangerment, according to court records. Further charges, including homicide, were filed Thursday afternoon.
According to the complaint, officers with the Coraopolis Police Department responded to an apartment building along Pennsylvania Avenue in Coraopolis shortly after 6 p.m. Tuesdayin response to a 911 call from the boy’s mother stating her son was unresponsive and not breathing.
Officials said the boy was at the apartment with his mother’s boyfriend, identified as Mason, at the time of the 911 call. The mother had left the apartment to drive friends to their house in Emsworth Borough.
Paramedics who arrived to the scene told police the boy had bruising on his forehead, right eyelid and jawline, as well as “significant” bruising to his left ear, according to the complaint.
Paramedic Supervisor Marlin Davis told officers the boy was “completely unresponsive and had no pulse the entire time he was with us. He was in cardiac arrest,” the complaint reads.
The boy was transported to Heritage Valley Sewickley Hospital where doctors found he suffered from a fractured skull and brain bleed. When asked if the injuries sustained were intentional, an emergency room doctor answered, “Yes,” according to the complaint.
Due to the extent of his injuries, the boy was transported to UPMC Children’s Hospital in Lawrenceville.
In an interview with police, the boy’s mother said she had known Mason for five years, and had been in a relationship with him for two months. According to police, the mother left the house around 5:45 p.m. to take her friends and their two children home. The boy was unable to go along with his mother because she did not have a third car seat, she told police.
When she left, the boy was asleep on the couch, but woke up as she was leaving. The mother told police at that point the boy was acting normal and did not have any bruises.
After she left, Mason and the boy were the only ones in the apartment, according to the complaint.
Shortly before 6 p.m., the mother said she received a call from Mason stating the boy would not wake up and that his breathing was shallow. Minutes later, the mother received another call from Mason who was “hysterical,” according to the complaint. At that point Mason said the boy was not breathing. The mother then called 911.
In an interview with police, Mason said the boy was asleep when the mother left the house. Shortly after, Mason said, the boy became “fussy” so Mason gave him water. When he continued to be “fussy and was screaming,” Mason gave him chocolate milk, according to the complaint.
Mason then moved to the other side of the room and began messaging his sister. According to police, Mason said he then noticed blood and a chewed french fry near the boy’s mouth. When he went to the boy, Mason said he found him unresponsive and not breathing, officials said.
Mason said he performed CPR until paramedics arrived.
By 9 p.m., police began to canvass the area, interviewing neighbors about the incident.
One witness told police that between 5 and 6 p.m. they heard three loud screams coming from the apartment. The witness said they do not normally hear the boy scream like that. A second witness gave a similar statement, police said, noting that it sounded like the child was screaming in pain. After four loud screams, the witness told police it was silent.
Allegheny County Police Lt. Venerando Costa said Mason is in the Allegheny County Jail awaiting arraignment on the homicide charges.
Staff writer Megan Guza contributed.