- Iris Rite Alfera died on June 29 from acetone poisoning in New Castle, Pennsylvania
- Aleidia Lynnae Owens, the baby’s girlfriend was arrested on Thursday after police found that she conducted extensive online research on harmful substances for children
- The baby also ingested button-shaped batteries and medal screws which showed up in her diapers
A vile woman from Pennsylvania who searched for ways to harm a child before ‘she poisoned her boyfriend’s 20-monthold daughter’ was arrested on Thursday.
Aleidia Lynnae Owens, 20, was charged with three counts of homicide, five counts of aggravated assault and one count of endangering the welfare of children after she poisoned her boyfriend’s daughter Iris Rita Alfera with acetone.
Iris was taken to the hospital on June 25 and was held in the PICU until she died on June 29.
During the investigation police found that Owens conducted extensive online research on harmful substances for children and it was later revealed that the toddler died from acetone poisoning.
‘Tell the world that monsters do exist,’ Crystal Joseph, a relative of Iris said on behalf of baby’s grieving family.
Iris Rita Alfera died on June 29 after she ingested acetone that ran into her bloodstream, which lead to organ failure
Aleidia Lynnae Owens, 20, was arrested on Thursday for poisoning baby Iris in June. Owens is the girlfriend of Bailey Jacoby, the child’s father
Iris is pictured with her mother Emily Alfera who has continued to post heart-wrenching tributes to her ‘sweet ray of sunshine and smiles’ since her death
The baby’s autopsy revealed that she had traces of acetone in her blood at the time of her death, which led to organ failure.
The New Castle Police Department also revealed that month’s before Iris’s tragic death, she had ingested numerous ‘water beads’ which were later found, expanded in her digestive system.
The baby also ingested button-shaped batteries and medal screws which showed up in her diapers.
Iris’s official cause of death was acetone poisoning, according to the criminal complaint.
New Castle News reported that as District Judge Richard A. Russo read Owens her charges, she sat ‘dry-eyed and expressionless.’
Owens was then taken to Lawrence County Jail and is being held without bond after the city police and the attorney general’s office conducted an extensive investigation that last months as they awaited hospital records and lab results.
‘We’re happy that they’ve finally arrested her. That’s the first step. It will be a long process in the court system,’ the baby’s grandfather Frank Alfera told New Castle News.
Iris is seen being held by her father who authorities said was not arrested in connection to the crime because ‘at this time, there is no evidence at all, linking him or anyone else to the baby’s death’
Iris lived with her mother and grandparents while her father Bailey Jacoby has visitation rights
The baby also ingested button-shaped batteries and medal screws which showed up in her diapers. Police found that Owens conducted extensive online research on harmful substances for children
The baby’s mother, Emily Alfera has continued to post heart-wrenching tributes to her ‘sweet ray of sunshine and smiles’ since her death.
Iris lived with her mother and grandparents while her father Bailey Jacoby has visitation rights.
Alfera and Jacoby were together for approximately two years before they split. The father then lived with Owens for about a year before Iris was killed.
‘I have no words for what has currently happened to my beautiful angel baby, never in my life I though I would be saying goodbye to the biggest light in my life,’ Emily posted on her Facebook a day after Iris died.
A separate Facebook page called Iris’ angels was also made in honor of the baby and serves as a nonprofit organization.
Purple posters, sweatshirts, and bags have been made and plastered around Iris’s hometown as her mother has gone on to raise awareness for child abuse.
A GoFundMe page was created when Iris was first taken to the hospital and has gone on to raise more than $17,000.
A group of friends and family that have supported Iris’s mother after her child tragically died are seen circled around a pair of baby shoes in honor or her
Owens was charged with three counts of homicide, five counts of aggravated assault and one count of endangering the welfare of children. She was taken to Lawrence County Jail and is being held without bond
Iris is pictured with her mother Emily who has created endless fundraisers for her child in town and advocated for child abuse
Asia Madison Kerr, a friend of the mother, also posted a group tribute of family and friends as they honored the baby with white Nike sneakers with painted purple check marks and caption it ‘Iris’s army.’
A small pair of baby sneakers with the same purple check mark were surrounded by a group of supporters, including Iris’s mother.
Iris’s father has not posted anything pertaining to his girlfriend’s arrest or his daughter’s death.
Police said that he was not arrested in connection to the heinous crime because ‘at this time, there is no evidence at all, linking him or anyone else to the baby’s death,’ Chief Bobby Salem said.
‘There was nothing throughout the investigation to show that he had any knowledge or involvement about what happened to the baby. He was questioned multiple times and was cooperative.’
State Attorney General Michelle Henry who handled the case said: ‘It is hard to fathom someone taking deliberate steps to harm a completely helpless child, then mislead investigators about what happened.’
‘My office will never stop working to hold individuals accountable who knowingly put the lives of others, especially vulnerable children, at risk.’