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Infant's death ruled homicide in KCMO

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Posted at 10:39 AM, Mar 11, 2021
and last updated 2021-03-11 19:22:20-05

KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Kansas City, Missouri, police are investigating the death of a 4-month-old baby boy as a homicide.

According to KCPD, officers were called to the 5400 block of Harrison Street on Tuesday around 6:15 a.m. for a report of a baby not breathing.

EMS told officers there were no obvious signs of injury or trauma.

The infant was taken to the hospital but has since passed away.

KCPD was contacted Wednesday night by hospital staff, who told officers the baby died and there had internal injuries.

The medical examiner ruled the child's death a homicide and an investigation is underway.

"This is a difficult one to talk about, super frustrating. All our homicides are difficult and extremely sad, but when we're talking about a baby you can appreciate the difficulty of this investigation," said Officer Donna Drake, a KCPD spokesperson.

Nearby neighbor Joey Skidmore said he and other neighbors watched as a heavy police presence covered the street Wednesday night.

"We knew something big had happened because they were lined up all up and down the street and we could hear them breaking in the back door over there," Skidmore said. "I'm really sad to hear about the child."

As of Thursday evening, Police didn't have information about a possible suspect.

For jurisdictions that utilize the Greater Kansas City Crime Stoppers Tips Hotline, anonymous tips can be made by calling 816-474-TIPS (8477), submitting the tip online or through the free mobile app at P3Tips.com.

Annual homicide details and data for the Kansas City area are available through the 41 Action News Homicide Tracker, which was launched in 2015. Read the 41 Action News Mug Shot Policy.