A 3-year-old boy found bruised and battered inside a Queens shelter on Sunday night was rushed to the hospital but couldn’t be saved, NYPD officials said. On Wednesday evening, the boy's father was arrested and charged with his son's murder.
Shaquan Butler, 3, was unconscious inside the Pan American Hotel in Elmhurst, which doubles as a city shelter, just before 8 p.m., police said. His parents called 911 and first responders rushed to the scene, finding the boy with bruises all over his body, according to the NYPD.
He was taken to Elmhurst Hospital in cardiac arrest, where he was later pronounced dead, according to police and fire officials.
Julie Bolcer, a spokesperson for the Office of the Medical Examiner said the child died from blunt force injuries to his torso.
The boy’s parents were questioned by police, and on Wednesday evening police said his father — also named Shaquan Butler, 26 — was arrested and charged with murder and two counts of manslaughter.
Police officers could be seen through the glass doors on the building’s first floor throughout the day Wednesday. An NYPD vehicle with the crime scene unit was parked on the access road on Queens Boulevard, where the shelter at the Pan American sits.
Residents of the shelter, many of them young women, emerged from the building in the early afternoon with babies and young children. Those who spoke to Gothamist on Wednesday ranged from those who heard of the child’s death the same night it happened to those who only found out on Wednesday morning, when police released information to news organizations. Multiple residents described the crime as “shocking,” saying the Queens shelter normally felt safe, as they looked back at the building behind them.
“People were peeping out the door saying there was a little lifeless body,” said Michelle Washington, a yearlong resident on her way to pick up milk with her 3-year-old daughter. “That’s horrible.”
Washington, who did not know the boy personally, said she had always felt safe at the Pan American — she often had security outside her door. There were cameras throughout the building, she said, and their room had the amenities of a hotel. She said she and her child lived just a few floors above the boy and his family.
“My heart broke. I started to cry because — the poor little boy, he didn’t have a chance. How could he defend himself?” she said.
Serious violent incidents involving children in family shelters have nearly quadrupled in recent years though they are still relatively rare — from less than one incident for every 3,000 residents per fiscal year, to more than one incident per 1,000 residents, according to the latest Mayor’s Management Report.
Homicides of children are also extremely rare. New York’s Office of Children and Family Services investigated 15 cases in New York City where a child died due to alleged abuse or mistreatment last year, and 16 deaths this year, according to state reports.
“Our top priority is protecting the safety and wellbeing of all children in New York City," said Marisa Kaufman, a spokesperson for the city's Administration for Children's Services. "We are investigating this case with NYPD."
A spokesperson for the city Department of Homeless Services didn’t immediately return a request for comment.
This is a developing story and has been updated with additional comment and information.
