Montgomery County Police say that they have arrested and charged a 28-year-old D.C. man in connection with the death of his girlfriend’s 16-month-old son.
Officers from the Third District and Montgomery County Fire & Rescue responded at approximately 4 a.m. March 11 to the 7900 block of Chicago Ave. in Silver Spring in response to a report that a child was not breathing. The child, Zavier Giron, was transported to an area hospital where he was pronounced dead, MCPD said in a news release.
Upon interviewing the child’s mother, detectives from the county’s Major Crimes Division were told that her son had been feeling unwell and when she awoke at 4 a.m., she found him not breathing, so 911 was called.
A medical examiner conducted an autopsy on Zavier at the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner in Baltimore, which revealed signs of abuse of the child.
It was discovered during the investigation that the mother’s boyfriend, 28-year-old Marlon Adilson Melendez, had allegedly abused the child, resulting in serious injuries.
Detectives obtained an arrest warrant for Melendez on May 19. He has been charged with first-degree child abuse and second-degree murder.
Melendez was arrested Monday in Hyattsville by the U.S. Marshals Capital Area Regional Task Force, MCPD said. He is currently held without bond.
MCPD Photo and Graphic
