Inset: Natalia Munoz-Paulino (Miami-Dade Corrections). Background: Apartment in the 8000 block of SW 147th Avenue in Miami where a 9-month-old died after ingesting drugs (Google Maps).
A Florida woman is behind bars after her 9-month-old got hold of some cocaine and methamphetamine and ingested the drugs along with eggshells and feathers, leading to his death, according to authorities.
Natalia Munoz-Paulino, 26, stands accused of second-degree murder and aggravated child abuse. According to a probable cause arrest affidavit reviewed by Law&Crime, detectives with the Miami-Dade Police Department responded to a hospital on July 2, 2024, when a 9-month-old boy was pronounced dead.
Investigators went to Munoz-Paulino's apartment in the 8000 block of SW 147th Avenue and found it to be "disheveled, unkempt and dirty with several items of clothing, old food, trash and used hygienic products scattered on the floor," the affidavit said. Cops at the scene said they had to prevent the boy's older sibling from eating out of a baby oil bottle.
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Munoz-Paulino explained she fell asleep while cradling the victim and woke up to find him "purple, unresponsive and stiff." But she later told investigators and other family members different stories about what happened. She said he had fallen and hit his head, that he had drowned and that he choked.
The suspect also told detectives that her son was prone to placing foreign objects in his mouth. An autopsy discovered he had eggshells and feathers in his stomach. The cause of death was lethal amounts of cocaine and meth while the manner of death was homicide by child neglect.
Cops arrested Munoz-Paulino on Monday. Post-Miranda, she admitted to using drugs on the weekend of her son's death while hosting a party at her apartment. The boy's father said he lives out of state and had previously seen the suspect use meth at the apartment.
Munoz-Paulino remains at the Turner Guilford Knight Correctional Center without bond. She pleaded not guilty.