AVERY CAHN - 21 Months - Troy NY

Toddler found dead, missing caretaker questioned and released

The investigation continues into a baby found dead in a
Troy apartment Saturday night. Officials say 21-month-old Avery Cahn
was left unattended by his caretaker, who police found and brought in
for questioning, but was later released. Our Megan Cruz has the latest.


TROY, N.Y. -- "This broke my heart because that little boy meant the world to me," said Michelle Fregin.
Fregin used to babysit 21-month-old Avery Cahn. She found out the toddler was
found dead Saturday night in this Griswold Heights apartment.
Fregin said she's shocked and angered by the circumstances of his death.
"I never left those kids alone," said Fregin. "Everywhere I went, they went with me."
But on Saturday, Troy Police said the toddler was left alone. Avery's
mother, who neighbors said is Shannon Pozniakas, 30, came home that
night to find Avery dead and the man she left her son with nowhere to be
found. Police later located Avery's missing caretaker about a mile from the apartment complex.
"He's given us a pretty good timeline of
his whereabouts," said Captain John Cooney of the Troy Police
Department. "We believe he did leave the child some time late afternoon.
The discovery of the deceased was approximately 7:45 p.m. It's fair to
said that there was a several hour gap between the presence of the
caretaker and the discovery of the deceased."
Cooney said the caretaker has since been released. He wouldn't give us a name, but
neighbors said it was Robert Hayden. He and Pozniakas had supposedly
dated, so he often watched Avery and his older brother Ethan.
Cooney said the investigation is still ongoing.
"Because toxicology results do take some time to come in, there won't be a
specific cause of death released in the near future so to say it's not
suspicious would be a misleading term, but we will not say it's
suspicious at this time."
But Cooney did say the caretaker will be
held accountable for his role Saturday night, likely either reckless
endangerment charges or endangering the welfare of a child.
"Knowing that the caretaker did in fact leave the child either in a state of
distress or the death came after the caretaker left certainly brings
some responsibility to the shoulders of that subject," said Cooney.
Fregin hopes police can find answers as soon as possible.
"Detail by detail. Because that's an innocent child," said Fregin.

http://hudsonvalley.ynn.com/content/top_stories/569491/toddler-found-dead--missing-caretaker-questioned-and-released/

Putting this here for now, but I expect it will be moving to murdered once LE sort it out.

Troy Police are continuing their investigation into the death of a two year old boy. Police say the boy's mother returned home Saturday evening to find her son alone and unresponsive in her Griswold Heights apartment. Investigators say the boy had been left with a family acquaintance who was missing from the apartment when the child was found.

The woman called 9-1-1, but paramedics were unable to revive the toddler.

An autopsy is being performed at Albany Medical Center on Sunday. At this time, police are not releasing the name of the boy, the mother or the caretaker involved.


Read more: http://www.cbs6albany.com/articles/boy-1289737-police-troy.html#ixzz1iyDvCZxh

http://hudsonvalley.ynn.com/content/top_stories/569491/toddler-found-dead--missing-caretaker-questioned-and-released/

TROY, N.Y. -- "This broke my heart because that little boy meant the world to me," said Michelle Fregin.

Fregin used to babysit 21-month-old Avery Cahn. She found out the toddler was found dead Saturday night in this Griswold Heights apartment.

Fregin said she's shocked and angered by the circumstances of his death.

"I never left those kids alone," said Fregin. "Everywhere I went, they went with me."

But on Saturday, Troy Police said the toddler was left alone. Avery's mother, who neighbors said is Shannon Pozniakas, 30, came home that night to find Avery dead and the man she left her son with nowhere to be found. Police later located Avery's missing caretaker about a mile from the apartment complex.

"He's given us a pretty good timeline of his whereabouts," said Captain John Cooney of the Troy Police Department. "We believe he did leave the child some time late afternoon. The discovery of the deceased was approximately 7:45 p.m. It's fair to said that there was a several hour gap between the presence of the caretaker and the discovery of the deceased."

Cooney said the caretaker has since been released. He wouldn't give us a name, but neighbors said it was Robert Hayden. He and Pozniakas had supposedly dated, so he often watched Avery and his older brother Ethan.

Cooney said the investigation is still ongoing.

"Because toxicology results do take some time to come in, there won't be a specific cause of death released in the near future so to say it's not suspicious would be a misleading term, but we will not say it's suspicious at this time."

But Cooney did say the caretaker will be held accountable for his role Saturday night, likely either reckless endangerment charges or endangering the welfare of a child.

"Knowing that the caretaker did in fact leave the child either in a state of distress or the death came after the caretaker left certainly brings some responsibility to the shoulders of that subject," said Cooney.

Fregin hopes police can find answers as soon as possible.

"Detail by detail. Because that's an innocent child," said Fregin.

TROY — An autopsy conducted Sunday failed to reveal any clues into
what killed a toddler who died suddenly and was left unattended for
hours Saturday night, police said.

Avery Cahn was found dead by his mother when she came back to her
Griswold Heights home at 7:45 p.m., police said. Avery's mother,
identified through birth records as Shannon Pozniakas, 30, had left her son under the care of a male friend, police said.

The friend had left the child unattended for several hours and was
not home when Pozniakas arrived back. It's unclear whether Avery died
before or after his mother's friend left him alone, police said.

Avery was pronounced dead at the scene. He was 21 months old.

"Our prayers go out to her," said Capt. John Cooney.

Police questioned the man who was supposed to be caring for Avery —
whose name they are not releasing — for hours Saturday night and into
Sunday morning, Cooney said. Police did not charge the man. However,
Cooney said that charges may come when the investigation is completed.

"There's an obvious issue here," Cooney said. "A caretaker
responsible for the well-being of a 2-year-old child left the child
unattended for quite some time."

"Charges likely will be addressed in the future," Cooney continued.
"As for taking the subject into custody, detectives felt it was not
necessary at this point. That, however, is very likely and very possible
to change in the near future"

Cooney said charges the man could potentially face include,
endangering the welfare of a child, a misdemeanor, or reckless
endangerment, a felony or misdemeanor, depending on the degree with
which the person is charged.

The man Pozniakas left to care for her son was found by police
walking near the intersection of Campbell and Vandenburgh avenues, a few
blocks from Griswold Heights, shortly after Pozniakas discovered her
son, Cooney said. Cooney said the man was very cooperative with
detectives. Police would not say why the man had left the child alone.

Cooney said police will know more about what caused Avery's death
after they receive results of Avery's toxicology report, which could
take several weeks. Avery's medical history was also not
available Sunday.

Pozniakas could not be reached for comment. Several of her friends posted messages and photos memorializing Avery on Facebook.

"R.I.P AVERY miss you very much little man your mommy loves you from
deep within her heart ... may god hold you and walk you though heavens
doors," one message read.

One popular picture circulating the site was of Avery standing in a
red shirt, checkered shorts and white sneakers, the smooth-faced child
staring ahead and traced with purple hearts.

"Rest in peace," text splashed across the picture read. "Fly high baby boy."

Read more: http://www.timesunion.com/local/article/Tot-s-death-still-a-puzzle-2449702.php#ixzz1j6OWaAmd

Poster's Note: I found this article today which has different information about the perp than the above articles. Look like the caretaker may have a sexual abuse record.

Police investigate 21-month-old's death in Troy
10:27 AM
TROY, NY - The Troy Police Department says they are in the early stages of the investigation into discovering how a toddler in Troy died over the weekend.

On Saturday night at approximately 7:45 p.m., the mother came home to her Griswold Heights apartment to find her child, 21-month-old Avery Cahn, dead.

Police say the mother had left the child with her boyfriend, 28-year-old Robert Hayden, for several hours to go to work but when she returned home Hayden was gone.

"The caretaker did in fact leave the child for several hours during the time where he was responsible for the child's well being," Captain John Cooney said.

Police say Hayden allegedly left the child home alone for more than two hours, however they are unclear whether he left the child alone in a state of distress or the death came after the caretaker left.

Neighbors of the child were distraught talking with NEWS10 about Avery. "He was a sweet little boy and he didn't deserve to die."

Hayden was allegedly found by officers walking nearby after the child had been found deceased. Police say Hayden is cooperating with the investigation and is not facing charges at this time.

NEWS10 learned that Hayden had been arrested, and pleaded guilty, in July 2010 for a sex crime against an 11-year-old girl. Law enforcement says there is no indication of any kind of sexual nature going on in this case at this time.

"My daughter is trying to make a living and go to work," Avery's grandfather, James Stickelmyer said. "You think you're leaving your child home being protected by someone and you expect to come home to them, but she came home to a tragedy instead. A lot of questions need to be answered."

"Anyone in their right mind wouldn't leave a child alone, regardless of the situation," Jaime Clark, Avery's aunt told NEWS10. Stickelmyer and Clark are both from Pennsylvania and came up to be with their daughter after they heard of Avery's death.

Police said toxicology results to help determine how Avery Cahn died will be available Monday, however the results are still pending.

The family has set up a fund to help cover funeral expenses. Contributions can be made at any SEFCU branch.

http://m.wten.com/default.aspx?pid=2705&wnfeedurl=http://www.news10.com/story/16472969/police-investigate?clienttype=rssstory

Police: Troy infant suffocated, killed by Hayden

Posted: Feb 21, 2012 1:00 PM CST
Updated: Feb 22, 2012 7:39 AM CST

The Troy man arrested in the death of a 21-month-old child who was in his care was arraigned on a new charge Wednesday. Robert Hayden pleaded not guilty to second-degree murder for the death of Avery Cahn. Hayden is accused of suffocating the child back in January. Megan Cruz has the details.

VIDEO REPORT AT LINK

TROY, N.Y. - The Troy Police Department announced Tuesday afternoon that 29-year-old Robert Hayden, of Troy, has been arrested and charged for the death of 21-month-old Avery Cahn six-and-a-half weeks after his death.

Hayden was arraigned in Troy City Court Tuesday afternoon and charged with Manslaughter 2nd-degree, a felony, in relation to Avery's death. He was remanded to jail with bail set at $30,000.

Avery was found dead the night of Saturday, January 7th at the Griswold Heights Apartment complex. Avery's mother left her child with Hayden earlier in the day. When Avery's mother, Shannon Pozniakas, returned home she discovered the child dead and the Hayden not present. Hayden was found by police walking nearby a short time later.

Troy Police Captain John Cooney says they now believe Hayden suffocated Avery when frustrated by his crying and left him dead, or dying, in the apartment for several hours.

For awhile, it appeared that the death of Avery may remain a mystery, the autopsy inconclusive, but Cooney says recent interviews with Hayden and witnesses changed the course of the case. Cooney said information obtained was then turned over to the medical examiner, whose findings lined up with the information discovered.

Hayden was registered as a Level 1 Sex Offender last Friday, for the April 2010 sex abuse of an 11-year-old girl. When leaving court, NEWS10 asked him what happened to Avery and why he left him alone. He had no answer and simply walked inside.

Pozniakas says Hayden never told her about his conviction on the sex crime. And had she known about it she would never have let him watch her child.

Police say Hayden had babysat the child in the past. They say there was no indication of any kind of sexual nature in the case of Avery's death.

http://www.news10.com/story/16983668/police-charge-man-with-death-of-troy-toddler