A New York City man, 39-year-old Aaron Henderson, is facing charges after allegedly throwing his 1-year-old niece down the garbage chute of a Long Island apartment building.
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As reported by PEOPLE, citing a New York City Police Department (NYPD) spokesperson, the incident occurred on Monday, July 21. At around 3 p.m., officers responded to a Steuben Street apartment building after receiving a 911 call reporting that the toddler was injured.
The New York Post reported that the girl’s father, who was in the restroom at the time of the incident, asked his brother where his daughter was. Then, Henderson allegedly admitted to dropping the baby girl down the trash chute. As per WABC, Henderson allegedly threw the girl down the chute from the third floor.
As a result, the 1-year-old’s parents rushed to the first room to check on their daughter. Moments later, the parents found the girl crying in the chute, opened it, and ended up rescuing her.
Fortunately, after being transported to Richmond University Medical Center, doctors found that the girl only suffered scratches to her head, face, and body, as per the outlet.
Aaron Henderson, meanwhile, was hospitalized for a psychological evaluation. Reportedly, his family described him as an autistic man. He has no previous arrests or “emotionally disturbed person incidents,” according to The Post.
On Wednesday, July 23, during his arraignment, a judge ordered Henderson to be held pending a psychiatric examination. He was charged with assault, unlawful imprisonment, and endangering the welfare of a child.
Neighbors React
Several neighbors were shocked by the incident that occurred at their apartment building. Neighbor Milton Franklin called the incident “saddening,” adding that he has been living in the building for “over 20 years.”
“I’m hurt,” Franklin added, as per KALB. “I’m just going to pray that God wraps his arms around this family and that they get through the situation.”
Another neighbor, Keisha Lacey, also reacted to the news.
“It’s sad to put a baby down the garbage chute. I mean, mental illness is…You have to be to do something like that,” Lacey told KALB. “Nobody in their right state of mind would do something like that to a child.”