A 4-year-old boy is dead and police suspect the crime was committed by his mother.
KTLA reports that Amelia Di Stasio, 23, of Milwaukee is accused of bounding her son with belts before setting him on fire, according to court documents.
A criminal complaint states that Milwaukee firefighters found Antonio Di Stasio’s lifeless body with his hands bound behind his back and a garbage bag over his head after responding to a call of smoke at an apartment on the morning of Sept. 28.
“The majority of his body was burned,” according to the complaint. It appeared that Antonio had been set on fire with the use of an unknown accelerant.
Police found a bottle of cooking oil on the bathroom sink, the complaint stated.
A lifeless pet guinea pig that had apparently been drowned in its cage was also found, and a smoke detector in the apartment had been placed in water.
An autopsy concluded that Antonio’s hands and arms had been bound to his sides with seven belts, and a plastic bag secured with a knot had been placed over his head. The autopsy also described him as having suffered “significant charring” to his skin and thermal injuries “to the majority of his body.”
His death has been ruled a homicide.
Antonio lived in the apartment with his mother, who was not there when authorities arrived.
According to a witness, the pair had moved into the building two months ago and the woman “wasn’t friendly and kept to herself.”
The witness also disclosed overhearing a quarrel the day before the child was killed, with him reportedly saying, “Please, Mommy. Stop! I won’t do it again.”
On the day of Antonio’s death, the witness said a “banging noise” could be heard coming from the apartment.
Another witness said she saw a “frazzled”-looking woman jump from the window of the apartment on Sept. 28.
Later that day, Di Stasio was arrested.
If convicted, Di Stasio faces a sentence of up to life in prison.
