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Father Confesses To Smothering 2-Month-Old Son Because He Was Crying

Emma Whitford

Published Dec 21, 2015

Modified Jul 24, 2017

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Emma Whitford

Published Dec 21, 2015

Modified Jul 24, 2017

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A Bronx woman confessed to a psychiatrist last week that her boyfriend killed her 2-month-old baby—and that the couple subsequently dumped the child's remains in a wooded area in Dutchess County. Now her boyfriend has been arrested and charged with murder.

According to the NYPD, detectives from the 49th Precinct in the Bronx were informed on Friday that a 2-month-old boy had died inside of 1849 Bogart Avenue near Rhinelander Avenue in the Bronx a day previous. Retracing steps described by the victim's mother, officers discovered the body of Mason Whyte in the woods near Kitchen Corner Road and Route 22 in the upstate town of Dover.

The infant's mother, identified by the Post as one Danielle Whyte, 31, made her confession at New York Presbyterian Hospital in White Plains after attempting to commit suicide by overdosing on pills, ABC reports.

Officers arrested the child's father, 51-year-old Jose Feliciano of the Bronx, on Sunday and charged him with second-degree murder, manslaughter and manslaughter of a child under the age of 11. Feliciano is believed to have choked and smothered the child because he would not stop crying, according to the NY Times.

Surveillance footage acquired by the paper shows Feliciano carrying a red duffle bag out of his Bronx home on the night of the murder, putting the bag in his trunk, and driving away. Authorities believe that the infant's body was in the bag.

Feliciano's building supervisor told the Post that he spoke frequently with Feliciano about the infant, and that Feliciano often said he was "always crying" and, "I can never sleep."

An investigation into the murder is ongoing, including Whyte's involvement.

Whyte reportedly told officers that she wasn't present when Feliciano killed her son. The couple allegedly drove more than 50 miles upstate and checked into the Heidi's Inn motel on Route 22 before burying the body in nearby woods.

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Emma Whitford

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