A 4-year-old girl was raped and beaten nearly to death by a 15-year-old relative Wednesday afternoon in Northeast Baltimore.
According to charging documents, a 15-year-old boy was baby-sitting the girl at the house of an undisclosed caregiver when the rape and assault occurred.
Responding to a call of “possible child abuse” on the 2900 block of Good Wood Road, police arrived to find the girl unconscious. The suspect, who was baby-sitting thevictim along with her 7-year-old brother, told police she was bouncing on the bed and “fell on the floor.”
However, after being interviewed by police, the suspect confessed to raping and beating the girl, allegedly chasing her downstairs to retrieve her at one point during the rape and beating her with a belt, charging documents said.
The juvenile, who is being charged as an adult, was arrested and charged with first-degree rape, second- and third-degree sexual abuse, first- and second-degree assault and child abuse, said Col. Fred Bealefeld, chief of detectives.
The girl, who had head injuries, bite marks on her thigh, and black eyes, was taken to Johns Hopkins Children?s Center, where she remained in critical condition with a “critical brain injury,” charging documents said.
“Anytime something happens to a child, especially a young child, it?s tragic,” police spokesman Lt. Bealefeld said at a press conference.
The suspect, who police said has no prior record, is being held in the Baltimore City Police Department?s central booking. Bail was not determined as of Thursday evening.
The Baltimore Child Abuse Center, which works with the city?s police department, Child Protective Services and the State?s Attorney?s Office to provide comprehensive forensic interviews of victims, had a 13 percent drop in cases and interviews in 2005 from 1,042 in 2004, officials said. The 394 interviews reported by BCAC in 2006 suggest a continuing decline in child sexual abuse in the city, officials at BCAC said.
