Police: Mother Admits To Smoking Crack Near Baby Smothered To Death
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FORT LAUDERDALE (CBSMiami) – A Miami-Dade woman is facing charges in connection with the death of her 6-week-old baby last April.
Detectives arrested Roxxanne Benales on Sunday as she had a bus ticket in hand for a return to her home state of Indiana. On Monday, she stood in court, accused of child abuse in the death of her 6-week-old baby, Ayla Cappas.
During the court hearing, Miami-Dade Police Det. Jessica Alvarez told a judge what she learned during the investigation.
"The mother was smoking crack cocaine in the presence of the child along with the baby's father," said Det. Alvarez.
Inside the couple's home in Southwest Miami-Dade, the detective said the baby was in a crib when Benales was smoking crack.
"They were smoking in the bathroom, according to her, and the door was open to where the baby could inhale the smoke," Alvarez explained to the judge.
The Medical Examiner determined the baby suffocated from co-sleeping with her parents, but a contributing cause was exposure to drugs.
The Medical Examiner's Office revealed that the child tested positive for cocaine. Benales reportedly admitted to smoking crack cocaine in the presence of the baby.
That's a much different story than the one Benales and the baby's father, Alvaro Cappas, told CBS4 News after the baby's death in April.
At the time, the couple said the child suffocated. They neglected to mention the drug issue.
"I put her on my chest. She fell asleep. I guess in the middle of the time she rolled over, I didn't know. It was an accident," Benales said at the time.
"I think that mom might have up bundled her, swaddled her up too much to keep her warm and she suffocated," Alvaro Cappas said.
Alvaro Cappas is also in jail of an unrelated charge of battery on Benales. He was arrested last week.
Benales is being held on $50,000 bond, while Alvaro Cappas is being held on a bond of $12,500.