The 6-year-old boy who was found dead in a Gary, Indiana alley Saturday was left to freeze outside his home before being burned and put in a plastic bag.
Damari Perry was murdered, the Lake County Coroner’s Office ruled Tuesday in a statement detailing his suffering in extreme weather before he died near an abandoned home.
The child’s body showed signs of “extremely cold core temperature and partially frozen internal organs,” the coroner said.
“Based on the above findings and the circumstance the pending cause of death is hypothermia.”
One of the boy’s legs had bruising and his body was partially charred following his death then put in a trash bag.
Authorities had since arrested Perry’s mom, Jannie M. Perry, 38, and charged her with first-degree murder. His 20-year-old brother and a minor sibling were also arrested.
The mom had on Saturday complained of an undisclosed illness and was taken to a hospital. Her bond hearing was therefore postponed.
