Local News in Brief : Cypress : Autopsy Finds Girl, 2, Was Homicide Victim
A 2-year-old girl who died Aug. 18 while staying with her aunt and uncle was the victim of a homicide, according to autopsy results released Wednesday.
The girl, Belina M. Youmans, was found unconscious with head and body injuries and extensive bruises, according to Cypress Police Lt. John Schaefer. The child, who lived with her parents in Las Vegas, had been left with her aunt and uncle, Lilly and Harry Youmans, about a month before her death.
According to police, either the aunt or the uncle telephoned paramedics to report that the child had fallen down a 15-step stairway inside the two-story apartment. She died the next day at Memorial Medical Center of Long Beach.
An autopsy performed by the Los Angeles county coroner’s office determined that the girl “died at the hands of another,” according to Schaefer.
The Youmanses’ three children--ages 3, 6 and 8--have been placed in protective custody while the child abuse investigation continues.
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