A New York mother charged with smothering her baby in a Manhattan restaurant Monday, reportedly told police she killed him because she “was afraid someone was going to eat him.”
The New York Post reports Latisha Fisher told police she was “protecting him” when she put her hand over her 20-month-old baby’s mouth.
Fisher had also told police Monday "the devil made me do it." She was later questioned at a midtown Manhattan precinct.
Fisher, 35, is charged with second-degree murder and was being moved to Elmhurst Hospital for psychiatric treatment, the Post reports.
The boy was found foaming at the mouth by a 5 Boro Burger restaurant employee Monday. The boy was reportedly rushed to Bellevue Hospital, where he later died.
Restaurant customers, concerned that Fisher and the child were in the bathroom for too long, contacted workers who used a key to get in, the police said. They then called 911.
An examination conducted Tuesday by the medical examiner was inconclusive and more tests are needed to determine exactly how the child died, a spokeswoman for the office said.
A spokesman for the Administration for Children's Services said in a statement that officials were launching an investigation, but were limited in what they could discuss because of privacy laws.
Mayor Bill de Blasio told reporters at an unrelated news conference that Gavriel's death was a "horrible tragedy."
"As a human being, as a parent, this one grabs at me. This is profoundly troubling," he said.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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