US woman charged with murder for starving her boyfriend’s seven-year-old son to death

A US woman was charged with second-degree murder for starving her boyfriend’s seven-year-old son to death in New York, local media reported last week.

The woman, Leticia Bravo, could face 25 years to life in prison for the crime, CNN reported.

Bravo was reportedly taking care of her boyfriend’s seven-year-old child, Peter Cuacuas. Her boyfriend was also charged with criminally negligent homicide.

Earlier this year, the woman took Peter’s body to a hospital in New York state, where he was pronounced dead. Doctors said the boy died due to malnutrition, weighting 37 pounds (16.8 kgs) at the time of his death, according to CNN.

US media reports said the woman kept the boy locked in a bedroom, denying him food.

Bravo reportedly worked as a childcare provider.

She took care of Peter since 2020, and he has since never attended his online school classes.

“It is unthinkable that someone would accept the responsibility of caring for a child and then deny that child the basic necessities of life,” District Attorney David Hoovler was quoted by CNN as saying.

“It is truly disturbing how this child was kept hidden from school authorities before he died,” he added.