Cat's tongue, tail cut off - infant murdered
Bronx, NY (US)Incident Date: Sunday, Dec 3, 2006
County: Bronx
Disposition: Not Charged
Person of Interest: Burly Lawrence Johnson
A cheating husband's rage over being nagged by his wife led him to kill their infant daughter, a police source and neighbors said.
Burly Lawrence Johnson, 25, tried to blame the death of 3-month-old Jayla on one of the other two children - both toddlers - living with him and his wife, Lisandra Garcia, cops said.
Johnson claimed one of the children had struck the infant with a toy, cops said.
But police charged Johnson with murder, saying he beat the tiny girl on the face in the family's apartment on E. 181st St. in the Bronx because he was furious with his wife.
Garcia was hysterical as ambulance crews tried in vain to revive Jayla on Friday night, a neighbor said.
Neighbors said the couple argued often.
"He always cheated on her, and they fought constantly, inside and out," said a neighbor who would not give her name.
Cops from the 48th Precinct were called to quell disputes between the couple at least twice in the past 12 months - in December 2005 and in April - but no one was arrested, sources said.
The city Administration for Children's Services had no involvement with the family.
Johnson, who has seven kids with several women, was recently fired from his job as a drug counselor and is facing a paternity suit, a police source said.
When one of his girlfriends, the mother of one of his kids, hassled him for support, he cut off her cat's tongue and tail, the source said. References« NY State Animal Cruelty Map
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