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Elizabeth Baier
St. Paul, Minn.

Father charged with murder in death of infant son

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A 19-year-old Minneapolis man has been charged with one count of second degree murder for the July 4 death of his infant son, authorities said Monday.

According to a criminal complaint, Alexander B. Heikes Sr. was watching his seven-week-old son, Alexander B. Heikes Jr., when the boy started to fuss in his crib.

Heikes St. picked the boy up, held him with his thumbs on his chest and fingers on his back, and started to squeeze in an aggressive manner, according to the complaint.

Heikes Sr. noticed the boy was having trouble breathing, and tried to soothe him by lying on the bed and putting the boy on his own chest. The father fell asleep and when he woke up hours later, he noticed that his son was not breathing and appeared dead, according to the complaint.

The boy was transported to North Memorial Medical Center where he was pronounced dead.

Authorities said an autopsy revealed that Heikes Jr. died as a result of blunt force trauma. His liver and spleen had been lacerated and he bled out into his abdominal cavity. The boy also had numerous areas of bruising on his abdomen and 10 to 12 rib fractures, authorities said.

Heikes Sr. is being held at the Hennepin County Adult Detention Facility on $750,000 bail.

His first court appearance is scheduled for 1:30 p.m. on Tuesday.