Toronto

Mother faces upgraded 2nd-degree murder charge after infant found dead in Toronto highrise

Police say a 30-year-old woman faces an upgraded charge of second-degree murder, after her infant child was found dead in a midtown Toronto highrise last week.

Charge was changed after autopsy on 4-month-old boy, police say

A multi-storey apartment building
Toronto police went to the building on Roselawn Avenue after the infant's father reported him missing on Nov. 20, 2024. (Mike Cole/CBC)

Police say a 30-year-old woman faces an upgraded charge of second-degree murder, after her infant child was found dead in a midtown Toronto highrise last week.

In a news release Monday, police said the charge was changed after an autopsy on the four-month-old boy. The Toronto woman was previously charged with failure to provide the necessities of life.

The accused was scheduled to appear in court on Monday morning.

Officers were sent to the building in the area of Roselawn and Marlee avenues in the late morning of Nov. 20, after the infant's father reported him missing.

They were able to find the boy and he was taken to hospital, where he was pronounced dead. Police announced the initial charge against the woman on Nov. 21. 

The boy's death is the 79th homicide in the city this year, according to police.

Anyone with information that could be useful to investigators is asked to contact Toronto police or leave an anonymous tip with Crime Stoppers.