Odessa, Texas, police arrested an 18-year-old man Monday after he assaulted two newborn infants and two members of hospital staff, nearly strangling one infant to death, according to reports.
Authorities charged the suspect, Marcus McCowan, Jr., with two counts of attempted capital murder, as well as assault, assault of a public servant, resisting arrest, attempting to take a weapon from an officer, criminal trespass and possession of a controlled substance, KMID reported.
Nurses dialed 911 at the Odessa Regional Medical Center (ORMC) at around 6:30 p.m., saying a man was choking an infant, the outlet reported, citing the affidavit. (RELATED: Police Arrest Texas Man In Connection With Bomb Hoax At Northeastern University)
McCowan physically fought with authorities upon arrival and unsuccessfully attempted to grab an officer’s firearm out of its holster, according to the press release from the Odessa Police Department (PD). McCowan assaulted two infants, two nurses and one Odessa Police Officer, the release noted.
Police in Odessa, TX arrested Marcus McCowan on Oct. 3 who allegedly assaulted hospital staff & strangled two newborn babies at Odessa Regional Medical Center. The affidavit says both babies had turned blue from lack of oxygen. Responding police were then attacked by the suspect. pic.twitter.com/BnMnmwgpmD
— Andy Ngô 🏳️🌈 (@MrAndyNgo) October 6, 2022
The teen was at ORC visiting his girlfriend who was in labor, the New York Post reported. After grabbing a nurse by the arm and making “an unintelligible statement,” McCowan was asked to leave the nurse’s station, the outlet noted. He then reportedly started running up and down the hallway, in a way nurses described as “odd and unreasonable.”
McCowan then reportedly went up to a mother holding her infant in a baby carrier and waiting to be discharged. He walked away after the mother took the child out of his sight, according to KVEO. Three nurses reportedly saw McCowan charging towards them while yelling and screaming, trying to access the nursery. He allegedly pushed one nurse to the ground in his attempt, the outlet reported.
McCowan grabbed the newborn from the baby carrier and brought her into a lactation room nearby, where he choked the her until her complexion changed color due to a lack of oxygen, KVEO reported, citing the affidavit. A nurse then managed to take the newborn out of McCowan’s grasp, according to the outlet.
McCowan then entered the nursery, where a respiratory therapist saw him grab an infant girl by the neck and say “die” before seemingly moving to throw her on the ground, KMID noted. The therapist managed to slowly bring McCowan down to the floor, so as not to hurt the newborn, and stayed with them until authorities arrived, the outlet continued.
Authorities brought McCowan to the Ector County Law Enforcement Center, with no bond set as of Tuesday morning, the outlet reported.