NORTH MIAMI BEACH, Fla. — A 6-year-old autistic boy who was hospitalized last month after what authorities described as a brutal beating allegedly at the hands of his mother’s boyfriend has died, his grandmother confirmed.
Mason, who had been in a medically induced coma since last month’s attack, died Friday, according to an Instagram post by his maternal grandmother, Elizabeth Garcia.
“Our sweet Mason was pure light. His smile could brighten the darkest room. His laugh was joy,” Garcia wrote. “Though his time here was short, his impact is eternal. He fought with strength beyond his years. He was surrounded by love every second. And when he took his final breath, heaven welcomed a beautiful angel home.”
Detectives with the North Miami Beach Police Department had previously arrested the boy’s mother, Cynthia Elaine Hernandez, 33, on charges of child neglect, failure to report child neglect and providing a false statement to law enforcement.
Police said Mason was severely beaten by his mother’s boyfriend, 34-year-old Daniel Eduardo Romero, who had also been arrested in the case.
Authorities said Romero, who is not the child’s father, initially claimed Mason fell off a bed. When the boy’s condition worsened and paramedics were called, investigators said Romero told Hernandez to say Mason fell off a bike.
Authorities said Mason suffered bleeding in his brain, liver and kidney, as well as spleen lacerations and a broken shoulder. Investigators said the injuries occurred at a home off Northeast 15th Avenue in North Miami Beach.
Police said Mason went into cardiac arrest and had no pulse when first responders arrived.
“We were waiting for him to wake up and open his eyes,” Garcia previously told Local 10. “He was sedated, so they decreased the sedation and yesterday, he did open his eyes, and it was the most amazing, powerful (moment), and it’s all the community, it’s people praying for him.”
Local 10 was outside the Turner Guilford Knight Correctional Center on Jan. 24 when Hernandez was released after posting bond of $11,500.
In her post announcing his death, Garcia also called for justice.
“Mason’s life mattered. His voice matters. His story matters,” she wrote in the Instagram post. “Justice for Mason is not optional: it is necessary.”
It is unclear whether additional charges would be filed following Mason’s death.
As of Saturday, Romero remained held without bond at the Metrowest Detention Center.
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