Maryland

Man to Be Arraigned in Death of Maryland Boy Found in Bag in Creek

A man suspected in the death of a 1-year-old Maryland boy whose body was found inside a backpack in a central Ohio creek is scheduled for arraignment on murder and other charges.

Online court records listed no attorney for 24-year-old Kurt Flood of Columbus ahead of his Wednesday arraignment. He also is charged with felonious assault, endangering children, evidence tampering and abuse of a corpse.

Prosecutors say Flood apparently believed the boy, Cameron Beckford, had demons and beat the toddler to get rid of them.

Flood was charged after the toddler's mother agreed to cooperate with prosecutors. The mother, 25-year-old Dainesha Stevens, had stayed with Flood at a home near where Cameron's body was found Dec. 31.

Stevens pleaded guilty to involuntary manslaughter and evidence tampering last week. She'll be sentenced later.

According to The Columbus Dispatch, Stevens brought Cameron and his 6-year-old sister to Columbus from Frederick, Maryland on Dec. 15.

The father of the two children later called police and reported that their mother had taken them to an unknown location in Columbus in mid-December. Based on the father's concerns, missing-child reports were issued.

Stevens initially told investigators that she left Cameron on the porch of a stranger, but her attorney later said she made that story up.

Stevens later pointed police to the creek where Cameron's body was found. 

Copyright AP - Associated Press
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