Valerie Owusu, Emmanuel Addae charged with murder of 5-year-old King Owusu on Long Island
BRENTWOOD, N.Y. -- The death of 5-year-old King Owusu, who was found unresponsive and unable to move on Long Island last year, has been deemed a murder.
The boy's mother and her boyfriend are the suspects, CBS2's Jennifer McLogan reported Friday.
The unthinkable occurred inside an apartment on Leroy Avenue in Brentwood.
"This poor kid suffered. This was a terrible, terrible case. This was a shocking case of abuse," Suffolk County Police Det. Lt. Kevin Beyrer said.
The 5-year-old died in Suffolk County on April 1, 2021. The medical examiner found blunt force trauma throughout his body.
One year later, his mother Valerie Owusu and her boyfriend Emmanuel Addae were arrested and charged with second degree murder. They are held without bail.
"We hold people that commit evil acts and bring them to justice," Suffolk Police Commissioner Rodney Harrison said.
A younger sibling who was unharmed is in custody of Child Protective Services.
The suspects were arrested at Suffolk Family Court, where they were called for a hearing.
The couple has been on the move. They had just visited the Republic of Ghana and moved to Orange, New Jersey from Lefrak City, Queens.
The abuse was discovered at the Brentwood apartment of Addae's parents, where the 911 call was made.
An ambulance brought the boy from Brentwood to South Shore University Hospital, but internal injuries were so grave that doctors were unable to save the child's life.
"He was beaten and it just breaks my heart," said Maria Rodriguez, a Brentwood resident. "Last year, at this time, COVID was rampant. So the ambulance coming up and down was a norm."
"I remember seeing a lot of cops in the area. Wow, that's so sad," Stalem Baez said.
"There's a lot of kids around, and the people seem nice, that live here. So it's very shocking," Kaiee Brown said.
Delay in the arrests was to prove the abuse took place in New York and not Ghana.
Owusu works in a consignment shop. Addae is a driver for hire. Both pleaded not guilty and have no prior arrests.
Owusu and Addae have separate attorneys and deny ever beating the child.