Former Rochester Man Faces First-Degree Murder Indictment
Red Wing, MN (KROC-AM News) - The Goodhue County Grand Jury has returned a first-degree murder indictment against a former Rochester man accused of killing his infant son earlier this year.
27-year-old Hunter Matthew Mccutchen now faces two counts of first-degree murder, a single count of second-degree murder, two counts of first-degree manslaughter, two counts of second-degree manslaughter, first-degree assault, two counts of third-degree assault, domestic assault, felony counts of torture of a child and child neglect, along with gross misdemeanor counts of malicious punishment of a child. He was arraigned on the charges contained in the indictment on Monday and his conditional bail was increased from $500,000 to $1 million.
According to the criminal complaint, McCutchen and the baby's mother met through a dating app in November 2021 and lived together in Rochester before moving to Red Wing in April of this year. In May, the Red Wing Fire Department responded to their residence on a report of a baby not breathing and found the 8-week-old child unresponsive. The infant was initially transported to the Mayo Clinic Health System Hospital in Red Wing but was then airlifted to Rochester.
The court document says x-ray images ordered by Mayo Clinic physicians in Rochester found multiple rib fractures in various stages of healing along with a leg fracture. The papers stated the physicians indicated "are highly suggestive of nonaccidental trauma in an infant." The charges also mention imaging done on the baby's head and brain that showed multiple areas of bleeding on the brain that pointed to the possibility of "shaken baby syndrome."
Red Wing Police investigators also spoke with the child's mother, who had suspected McCutchen of harming the baby and had taken photos of bruising and other marks on the infant prior to the day when emergency responders were called to the residence. The criminal complaint also states that she supplied investigators with an audio recording she had made with her cell phone of a conversation with McCutchen during which he is heard admitting that he had become overwhelmed and had shaken the baby.
McCutchen was originally charged with multiple counts of manslaughter and child endangerment in connection with his son's death.
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Gallery Credit: Photos supplied by Rochester Police Departmentt
