Neighbors Point To Babysitter As Likely Suspect Behind Toddler's Homicide
SACRAMENTO (CBS13) — A toddler was left in the care of a neighbor prior to the boy's mother discovering him dead in what the coroner is calling a homicide.
Investigators haven't named a suspect yet, but they confirm that Samuel Crutchor, a man who lived a few doors away from the family, was the man trusted to watch the boy who was found dead.
Linda Hernandez says it was the man who lived across from her who was watching William Philyaw and his older brother on Tuesday when their mother found William unresponsive.
"I went up there, and he was in the bathroom," said Hernandez, who tried to revive the 2-year-old. "The baby was grey, purple lips."
And as William's mother screamed that her son wasn't breathing, the man she trusted with her children was nowhere to be found.
"After seeing the little boy's body, it wasn't shocking really," Hernandez said.
She says the toddler's father went looking for Crutchor after his son's death. But he didn't find him.
That's because on Wednesday, Crutchor was in jail on an outstanding warrant out of Monterey County.
Sacramento County Sheriff's investigators haven't identified him as a suspect in the homicide, but they do confirm he was the boys' sitter that day.
Her friend, and William's mother, hasn't been at her apartment since losing her baby.
Crime-scene tape and gloves left behind at their door are reminders of the tragedy as people mourn the loss of a happy little boy.
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