Unlicensed Practitioner Treats 11-Month-Old With Lethal Dose Of Magnesium, Gets Charged For Murder

An 11-month-old baby girl in New Jersey died after being allegedly administered a lethal dose of magnesium to treat constipation. The police arrested the child's mother and the unlicensed practitioner who treated the infant.

Elida Ofelia Medina-Ramos, 73, of Guatemala who resides in Palisades Park administered medical care to the 11-month-old child identified as Genesis Catalan, allegedly leading to her death on Dec. 7, 2021, NJ.com reported.

Medina-Ramos has been charged with first-degree aggravated manslaughter, third-degree unauthorized practice of medicine, and third-degree endangering the welfare of a child.

The infant's mother, Enma Medina, has also been arrested on charges of child endangerment for allegedly allowing the unauthorized practitioner to treat the child.

Medina brought her infant to Medina-Ramos's apartment at around 8:30 a.m. on Dec. 7, as the girl was sick. Although Medina-Ramos was not authorized to practice medicine in the U.S., she has been treating children, including the victim's brother, when he was a child.

Medina-Ramos told the police that after massaging the baby’s stomach, she treated her with a liquid substance that contained magnesium, olive oil and water to alleviate constipation. However, the baby suffered an adverse reaction within minutes. She said such a thing has never happened in all her time of treating children while admitting that she did not have the license to treat them.

The emergency officers responded to the scene on a report of a child being unconscious and not breathing. The infant's mother told the responding officer that she believed the baby was choking. The child was rushed to a hospital but was pronounced dead.

The infant's death was ruled a homicide last month after a toxicology report indicated that the baby had a high magnesium level in her system.

During an investigation, the detectives noticed Medina-Ramos removing numerous medical syringes and boxes of medicines and vitamins from a drawer of her house. The investigators secured her apartment, and Medina-Ramos was taken to the Bergen County Prosecutor’s Office, where she eventually admitted that she had administered the medicine to treat the child.

After the arrest on Monday, Medina-Ramos has been held in the Bergen County Jail pending a court hearing, while Medina has been released, court records revealed.