In the years prior to the boy’s death, state investigators with the Children, Youth, and Families Department had responded to at least four reports of neglect involving the child.

A New Mexico mother has been arrested after authorities say she is suspected of allowing her 5-year-old son to slowly die by starvation.

Marecella Vasquez Montelongo, 23, was arrested in late February months after her son, who had Cerebral Palsy and other disabilities, was found in July unconscious and not breathing at her Albuquerque home. The boy was pronounced dead and an autopsy later determined that he died of starvation and dehydration due to neglect, according to a criminal complaint provided to USA TODAY.

In the years prior to the boy’s death, state investigators with the Children, Youth, and Families Department had responded to at least four reports of neglect involving the child, according to the complaint.

Montelongo had her first court appearance Wednesday in a Bernalillo County court room on a charge of child abuse resulting in death. A judge ruled that Montelongo must remain in custody until the start of her trial and complete an addiction treatment program, according to KOAT-TV, which was the first to report on the case.

Philadelphia: Body found in duffel bag identified as 4-year-old reported missing in December

Child appeared to be ‘skin and bones’ at his death

Albuquerque police were dispatched to Montelongo’s home on July 16 after receiving a report of the unresponsive child. While paramedics attempted life-saving measures, the boy was pronounced dead at the scene, according to the complaint, dated Feb. 26.

Montelongo told police at the scene that she had fed her son but that he had vomited. Shortly after, she noticed he was not breathing and called 911, the complaint states.

At the time of his death, the boy appeared as “skin and bones,” with his hip bones clearly defined and open ulcers on his tailbone, according to the complaint. When medical examiners conducted a preliminary autopsy, they discovered that the boy had dropped to a weight of about 13.6 pounds.

The final autopsy, which was completed in October, concluded that Montelongo’s son had died from starvation and dehydration, and ruled that the manner of death was a homicide.

‘Red flags’ surfaced before boy’s July death

The boy was nonverbal, blind, used a wheelchair and required round-the-clock care, according to investigators. Montelongo was required to give her son medication three times a day through a gastrostomy tube, otherwise known as a G-tube.

However, Montelongo routinely missed her son’s doctor’s appointments, including five since December 2022. While she noticed her son was losing weight, she told investigators that she did not think it was a concern, the complaint states.

Since the boy’s birth, the New Mexico Children, Youth and Families Department received four reports of medical neglect, including one report that was substantiated, according to the complaint.

Though the child was enrolled at he New Mexico School for the Blind and Visually Impaired, records provided to investigators showed that he only reported for on day of school in September 2022 and never showed up again.

“This defendant made efforts to hide the abuse and this child’s demise from medical advisors and the school,” Bernalillo County Judge David Murphy said at Montelongo’s hearing, according to video aired by KOAT-TV.

Some advocates went so far as to question how Montelongo was able to retain custody of her son following the series of red flags.

“We had medical providers, educational providers, service providers and family members raising flags,” Maralyn Beck, founder and executive director of the nonprofit New Mexico Child Network told KOAT-TV. “Yet here we are.”

Eric Lagatta covers breaking and trending news for USA TODAY. Reach him at elagatta@gannett.com

New Mexico labor announced a legal settlement that resolves longstanding accusations of unpaid wages against a restaurant business in northwestern New Mexico.

The Workforce Solutions Department said in a news release that 505 Burgers Farmington LLC has agreed to pay out $100,000 to resolve claims by two former employees that they received only a small portion of the wages they were due for more than 3,000 hours of work, including overtime.

The settlement resolves a complaint originally filed in 2017 by Francisco and Sandra Olivas with the state labor relations division that wound its way through an administrative investigation before going to trial in 2022. The New Mexico Court of Appeals rejected a challenge by the employer before a final settlement was reached.

505 Burgers owner Morgan Newsom declined to comment on the settlement.

Workforce Solutions Secretary Sarita Nair said her agency strives to provide education and training to businesses to ensure employees are paid fairly.

“But when prevention does not work, our capable team will pursue these cases for workers, no matter how long it takes,” she said in a statement.

New Mexico workplace regulators have struggled in the past to keep pace with complaints of alleged wage theft linked to enforcement of the state’s minimum wage law.

The state labor relations division said it collected more than $689,000 during the 12-month period ending in June 2023 for New Mexico workers claiming underpayment or nonpayment of wages. Most of the complaints have raised allegations of unpaid overtime, failure to pay minimum wage and an employer withholding a final paycheck.

Copyright 2024 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Topics
Fraud
Mexico
New Mexico

New Mexico State transfer guard/forward Femi Odukale committed to Minnesota Wednesday, after visiting the program earlier this week.

Listed at 6-foot-6, 205 pounds he averaged 10.7 points, 6.4 rebounds and 3.0 assists last season for the Aggies in 28.7 minutes per game.

Last season was his first in Las Cruces, New Mexico, after playing one year in Seton Hall and beginning his college career with two season at Pittsburgh. He will have one year of eligibility left with the Gophers.

After adding Macalester transfer shooting guard Caleb Williams earlier today from the transfer portal, Odukale has a chance to replace star freshman Cam Christie who is likely off to the NBA Draft at the two or three starting spot for Ben Johnson and the Gophers.

Minnesota now has three open scholarships to work with, as they continue to look for players in the transfer portal.