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EDINBURG — An 18-year-old Edcouch man accused of strangling his one-year-old son to death made a first appearance Wednesday afternoon at the city’s municipal court.
Dalyn Josiah Ramos is charged with capital murder.
Ramos, who is deaf, was provided a sign language interpreter.
Edinburg Municipal Court Judge Hector Bustos slowed down the proceedings in order to make sure that the interpreter, Raquel Merrill, was communicating everything clearly.
Bustos told Ramos that he could raise his hand at any point if he had any questions or concerns, though he never did.
Ramos signed or mouthed yes to communicate that he understood as he stood between his attorneys, Jaime Pena and Criselda Rincon-Flores.
Outside of the courtroom, a lifelong friend of Ramos’ waited and asked Merrill in sign language for an update.
She and her companion broke into tears upon signing with Merrill.
Investigators allege that Ramos strangled his one-year-old son to death Monday night.
“(A)t approximately 9:43 p.m., Edinburg Police Officers responded to the 500 block of East Samano Street in reference to an unresponsive one-year-old baby boy,” the news release stated.
Edinburg police, EMS and the Edinburg Fire Department responded to the scene in attempts to revive the child.
The child was transported to Edinburg Regional Children’s Hospital where he was pronounced dead.
Detectives then initiated their investigation and interviewed all occupants at the residence.
“Through the investigation, it was discovered that the baby boy had signs of trauma along with inconsistencies with the story of the reporting parties,” the release said.
In the end, Ramos confessed to strangling his son, according to police.
The mother of the infant was out of town at the time of the incident, according to the news release.
Ramos remains in custody on a $1 million bond.
Editor’s note: This story has been updated with new information.
To see more, view Monitor photojournalist Delcia Lopez’s full photo gallery here:
Photo Gallery: Edcouch man receives $1M bond for allegedly strangling infant son
