Police arrested a 32-year-old man Sunday in connection with the beating death of a 2-year-old child in Long Beach.
Charles Edward Davis Jr. was arrested in Inglewood about 11:15 a.m. and booked on suspicion of murder and assaulting a child resulting in death, according to the Long Beach Police Department and Los Angeles County jail records. Davis was being held on $2 million bail. No court appearance date was released.
Long Beach detectives said that 2-year-old William Meeks and Davis were allegedly alone inside a parked car in the 900 block of Daisy Avenue about 7:35 p.m. on June 14, 2019, when the assault occurred, the LBPD reported.
When authorities arrived at the scene, the boy was found in the arms of a good Samaritan who was trying to render first aid, police said.
Davis was believed to be an acquaintance of Meeks' mother, police reported.
Initially, the call was investigated as a medical emergency. However, the autopsy report determined the toddler's cause of death was blunt force trauma, police said.
Detectives reported the assault took place inside a silver 2016 Hyundai Sonata parked in a liquor store parking lot.
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The case against Davis was expected to be presented to the L.A. County District Attorney's office this week, police said.
Anyone with information on this homicide was asked to call LBPD homicide detectives Benjamin Vargas, Mark Mattia or Donald Colliet at 562-570-7244. Tipsters can also call Crime Stoppers at 800-222-8477.
