Baby injured so badly it will die: father arrested

Created: 2022-12-15, 3:08 p.m

By: Johanna Werning

imago0195177151h.jpg © Maximilian Koch/Imago

A 19-year-old is said to have shaken his six-week-old baby so much that it "will die in the next few days," according to the Cologne police.

Cologne – A 19-year-old was arrested in the Cologne-Nippes district on Wednesday evening, December 19.

"He is accused of inflicting such severe brain injuries on his six-week-old daughter in the shared apartment that she will die in the next few days," it said on Thursday.

Cologne: Father is said to have injured the baby so badly that it will die

"Currently there is a suspicion that it is a case of shaking trauma," says senior public prosecutor Ulrich Bremer when asked by 24RHEIN.

A shaking trauma is a brain injury caused by violent, violent shaking in babies and young children.

It was still unclear on Thursday afternoon whether the family was already known to the youth welfare office, according to Bremer from the Cologne public prosecutor's office.

"The investigation is still ongoing."

One thing is already clear: the man from Cologne called the emergency services himself on Tuesday and spoke of an alleged fall, reports 24RHEIN.

"After an initial forensic medical examination in the hospital, the course of events he described contradicts the diagnosed injuries," said the police and public prosecutor.

Baby in Cologne critically injured: father (19) arrested

The Cologne police have set up a murder commission.

According to initial investigations, the 19-year-old was alone in the apartment with the infant at the time of the crime.

He was arrested on Wednesday evening.

He is to be brought before a magistrate today "because of the strong suspicion of attempted manslaughter".

This is a shaking trauma

► A shaking trauma is a brain injury caused by external violence in infants and young children.

► The baby or toddler is shaken so hard that the head is thrown back and forth uncontrollably.

► When the baby is shaken, the baby's head tosses back and forth uncontrollably.

Because the infant cannot hold its head up on its own due to its weak neck muscles.

The brain is tossed back and forth in the skull.

Blood vessels and nerves can tear.

► The result: Lifelong disabilities and even death are possible.

► Children are often shaken so hard when they cry beforehand.

►10 to 30 percent of shaken children who are brought to a clinic die.

Around two-thirds of babies who survive a diagnosed shaking trauma experience delayed or chronic damage.

Only an estimated 10 to 20 percent of infants survive a diagnosed shaking trauma without permanent damage.

Source: Federal Center for Health Education.

(jw with ots)