YORK COUNTY, Pa. — A York County man has been accused of beating a 3-month-old baby nearly to death late last year, according to Newberry Township Police.
Stephon Colon III, 25, of Fairview Township, has been charged with aggravated assault, endangering the welfare of a child, simple assault and reckless endangerment, according to the criminal complaint affidavit filed by investigators last month.
The charges are the result of an investigation launched last December, when medical personnel at the Hershey Medical Center contacted authorities to report the victim's injuries.
One doctor described the child as "near death" as a result of his injuries, which included bruises on his sides and bleeding in his brain.
The child was also suffering from the the results of an earlier brain hemorrhage, a retinal hemorrhage and two fractured ribs, investigators claim in the complaint.
Colon allegedly admitted to abusing the child, claiming he pressed a fist on the boy in a way that "could have even hurt a grown man," the complaint states.
The investigation was launched on Dec. 9, 2022, while the child was being treated at Hershey Medical Center.
After speaking to doctors about the boy's injuries, police interviewed Colon, who admitted he was the child's caretaker at the time the injuries occurred, police claim.
Colon allegedly told police that on the afternoon of Dec. 8, he forgot he was holding his son and dropped him as he stood up from the couch.
Colon said the baby stopped breathing, and said he pressed on the baby's chest, jabbed his sides and pinched and shook him in an attempt to revive the child, police claim in the complaint.
The baby eventually did begin breathing again, and Colon told them he went outside to smoke a cigarette.
At about 10:30 p.m. on Dec. 8, the baby began vomiting and having seizures, Colon allegedly told police. At that point, Colon and his girlfriend decided to take the boy to a hospital, according to the complaint.
Colon allegedly told police he did not tell his girlfriend or the baby's doctors what had happened earlier in the day.
Days after the initial interview, police claim, Colon requested a second interview with investigators, at which time he allegedly admitted to another incident with the child that had occurred in November 2022.
During this earlier incident, Colon told police, the baby and another child were fussing, and Colon could not get the infant to stop crying. Colon allegedly told police he "snapped" and was "full of anger," so he put his fist on the baby's chest and used his other hand to hold the baby's head down.
Colon allegedly told police he put so much pressure on the boy's chest that he thought it "could have even hurt a grown man," according to the criminal complaint.
The charges against Colon were filed in early January 2023.
A preliminary hearing has been set for Feb. 13, according to court records.
