A North Carolina college professor was charged with murder after his 6-week-old adopted son died from injuries that resulted from physical abuse, police said.
Van Erick Custodio, 42, was initially charged with one count of felony child abuse after Gastonia officers were called to a home on April 1 for the report of an infant in cardiac arrest.
Police said the infant, Lucas Birchim, was hospitalized with life-threatening injuries.
“During the investigation, detectives determined that the infant’s cardiac arrest was related to injuries sustained that were consistent with being physically abused,” police said in a news release.
He died on Wednesday, resulting in Custodio's charges to be upgraded to first-degree murder.
Custodio has been in jail since Monday when he was arrested in York County, South Carolina. He has since been extradited to North Carolina and is being held on a $500,000 bond.
Custodio taught computer science at Belmont Abbey College. A spokesperson for the college said he was hired in 2019. At the time of the alleged incident, he was not teaching after requesting family leave.
He has since been suspended, the spokesperson said, adding that their "thoughts and prayers are with all of those impacted by this terrible event."
