Man Fatally Beats 2-Month-Old While Changing Diapers

A Florida man was arrested after he admitted to punching a two-month-old girl in the head and fatally beating her to death.

On Monday, Artem Eydelman, 29, from Largo, Florida, was charged with one count of first-degree murder and two counts of violation of probation after seven-week-old Gwendolyn Eydelman was found unresponsive at 5:04 p.m. EST in her home by deputies on Nov. 17, NBC-affiliated WFLA reported.

After paramedics unsuccessfully tried to revive the child at her home, she was rushed to Johns Hopkins All Children’s Hospital with life-threatening injuries. The infant was diagnosed with a severe skull fracture, which doctors informed was consistent with high-force impact. She also suffered bleeding on the brain and numerous rib fractures consistent with compression trauma.

On Nov. 19, Gwendolyn was taken off life support and she succumbed to her injuries shortly after.

Artem, who called 911 and was the only one present at the house with the victim when the police arrived, was not the biological father of the child. He began dating the child’s biological mother, Mariah Samon, 26, when the latter was three months pregnant and also had signed Gwendolyn’s birth certificate. Samon was at work at the time of the incident, leaving her daughter in the suspect’s care.

When Artem was initially questioned by the detectives, he said he had gone to sleep after feeding the victim and laying her down in her bassinet – which was located in her mother’s room. When he returned after 15 minutes, Artem said he found Gwendolyn unresponsive.

However, the suspect changed his statements when the detectives pressed on details in his narrative which were inconsistent with the evidence found in the case.

In the revised account, Artem said he grew frustrated while changing the victim’s diaper and he repeatedly punched her head with his fist. He also admitted to shaking the child and squeezing her midsection before the infant became unresponsive. The suspect added he had informed a family member before dialing 911.

Following his confession, Artem was arrested and booked in the Pinellas County Jail. A background check revealed that the suspect was in violation of two counts of probation – one for robbery by sudden snatching and another for dealing in stolen property, ABC Action News reported.

The investigation is currently ongoing.

In a similar incident on Sunday, a man in India was accused of slitting his six-month-old daughter's neck and chopping off her fingers after having a fight with his wife for reportedly having an extra-marital affair with a neighbor. The 20-year-old suspect, Jahid, told police that he flew into a rage after overhearing his wife telling someone that he might not be the biological father of their child.