A Magnolia couple has been charged in connection with the September death of their 5-month-old girl, Delaware State Police announced late Thursday.
The infant, whose birth and death were never reported to authorities, died as a result of “issues associated with malnourishment,” said Master Cpl. Heather Pepper, a state police spokeswoman.
Angel Toran, 22, and her 24-year-old fiancé, Ny’Jier Murphy were taken into custody on Thursday.
The couple lived in the 400 block of Lambert Drive, east of Magnolia, in a neighborhood of mobile homes and modular homes, most with large yards. The community, just east of U.S. Route 13, is less than a mile from Polytech High School. Many of the properties have “no trespassing” or “beware of dog” signs posted.
Except for an occasional bark of a dog, the couple’s neighborhood was quiet on Friday as news spread of their arrest.
“I’ve watched them grow up,” said Krupa Patel, whose family has owned the nearby Ernie’s Country Store since 2000. “They are very nice kids and their grandparents are very nice.”
“I was shocked when I read the report,” he said. “I said, ‘No, they wouldn’t do that. Something’s not right.’ I don’t think they would let their baby starve.”
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According to police, Toran gave birth at home to a baby girl in April. In mid-September, the infant died, police said.
After the state Division of Family Services received information that the infant had possibly died at the home, the division and state police went to the couple’s residence in the 400 block of Lambert Drive on Oct. 10.
When police made contact with the couple, police noticed Murphy had a concealed handgun in a holster on his hip. A computer check determined Murphy does not possess a permit for carrying a concealed deadly weapon in Delaware, Pepper said.
Police also learned the child’s body was buried on the property.
“The infant’s body was exhumed from the property on Oct. 11, 2021, and turned over to the Division of Forensic Science for an autopsy to be performed,” Pepper said.
The investigation found the infant had been severely malnourished and died of medical issues associated with malnourishment, police said.
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The couple, on Thursday, was taken into custody while at Delaware State Police Troop 3 near Camden-Wyoming.
Both were charged with first-degree murder by abuse or neglect and first-degree conspiracy. Murphy was also charged with a weapons offense.
Both were committed to Delaware Department of Correction after failing to pay a cash bail: Toran’s bail is $260,000, while Murphy’s is $270,000.
Contact Esteban Parra at (302) 324-2299, eparra@delawareonline.com or Twitter @eparra3.
