The St. Lucie County community is grappling with unanswered questions following the death of a three-month-old baby boy who was pronounced dead at HCA Florida Lawnwood Hospital. According to a news conference with Lt. Andrew Bolonka of the St. Lucie County Sheriff’s Office, as detailed in a report by CBS12, the infant was unresponsive when brought to the emergency room by his grandparents at around 11:15 a.m. yesterday. Under mysterious circumstances, the boy's death has led law enforcement to open a criminal investigation.
The sheriff's office was called after the hospital staff, based on their initial assessment, found the baby's death to be particularly alarming. "The child was taken in immediately by medical staff, and medical attention was administered immediately upon arrival," Bolonka said, a detail confirmed by WPBF 25 News. However, despite the haste, the efforts to revive the child were unsuccessful. Detectives performed interviews with the family and medical personnel at the hospital, thereafter deeming the baby's death as "very suspicious in nature," according to the WPBF 25 report.
Following these preliminary findings, the sheriff's office and members from the State Attorney’s Office moved to the child's home on Silverstream Circle. There, they executed a search warrant in hopes of shedding light on the boy's final days. Lt. Bolonka has not disclosed what was discovered during the search, nor the specifics of what initially led detectives to consider the death suspicious, as the investigation is ongoing.
Despite the gravity of the situation, no charges have been filed as the community awaits further developments. The Medical Examiner's involvement is expected to provide crucial information regarding the baby's cause of death. “You have a 3-month-old child that arrives at a hospital deceased, medical staff based on what they see find it very suspicious and thus the investigation,” Bolonka told WPBF 25. The infant's identity remains undisclosed.
