Police Charge Mother In Death Of Baby Found In Queens Apartment Courtyard
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork/AP) -- Authorities say the mother of a baby boy who was found dead in the courtyard of a Queens apartment building has been charged with murder.
The New York City medical examiner's office ruled the death of 3-week-old Rizwan Ahmad a homicide.
Julie Bolcer, a spokeswoman for the city's medical examiner, said an autopsy revealed that Rizwan died of blunt impact injuries to his head and torso. The infant suffered skull fractures and lacerations to the brain, liver and spleen, she said.
Law enforcement sources told CBS2 that the mother, Rashida Chowdhury, confessed to throwing the little boy out of a window in the Richmond Hill apartment.
Chowdhury told authorities that she believed that Jinn, an evil spirit in the Muslim religion, took the baby because he was possessed. Muhamed Ahmed, the father of the child, told investigators he awoke to his wife asking, "where's the baby?"
Police responding to a 911 call found Rizwan unconscious and unresponsive in the courtyard of 85-55 115th St., near Myrtle Avenue around 4 a.m. Friday.
The baby, who was wearing a onesie, was discovered on the ground. He was pronounced dead at the scene.
Neighbor Mazol Ilyayeva, 20, said she heard a thud and then found the baby in the courtyard.
"I saw blood everywhere, and it's horrible," Ilyayeva said.
Police said Chowdhury, 21, is charged with second-degree murder and second-degree murder of a person less than 11 years old.
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