JOSIAH SAINTIL - 1 Month/ Accused: Father; Janus Saintil - Port Lucie FL

Amber Alert issued for 1-month-old boy

Posted: Today at 12:10 pm EDT
Last Updated: Today at 12:20 pm EDT

AMBER Alert

PORT ST. LUCIE, Fla. (AP) -- An Amber Alert has been issued for a 1-month-old boy last seen in Port St. Lucie.

The Florida Department of Law Enforcement issued the alert Friday morning for Josiah Saintil, who turns 2 months old next week.

He was last seen wearing a blue onesie with `mommy all-star' on the front. He also has a Winnie the Pooh blanket.

State officials say the child may be with 24-year-old Janus Saintil, who is considered armed and dangerous. They may be traveling in a 2008, black Kia Spectra.

No further information was immediately released.

Read more: http://www.wsvn.com/news/articles/local/21007626316129/amber-alert-issued-for-1-month-old-boy/#ixzz1wZd2h8Vj

Body of missing month-old boy found dead in trunk

Posted: Today at 3:50 pm EDT

CORAL SPRINGS, Fla. (AP) -- Coral Springs police say they found a missing 1 month-old dead in the trunk of a car and his father is in custody.

Lt. Joe McHugh says the body was found Friday afternoon, hours after an Amber Alert was issued for Josiah Saintil, who turns 2 months old next week.

McHugh says the child's father, 24-year-old Janus Saintil, is being held. Charges were not immediatley filed and no further information has been released.

State officials said in the alert that Janus Saintil was considered armed and dangerous. He was traveling with the child in a 2008, black Kia Spectra.

Read more: http://www.wsvn.com/news/articles/local/21007627661140/#ixzz1wZe3AzAS

FORT LAUDERDALE,
A Florida man is being held without bond in the death of his
1-month-old son, who was found in the trunk of a car.
Janus Saintil was being held Saturday at the Broward County jail
on charges of murder, kidnapping and other counts.

The Broward Sheriff’s Office says Saintil kidnapped the baby’s
mother, another woman and a man on Thursday. He allegedly left the
adults in Port St. Lucie and returned to Broward County with the baby.
The baby’s body was found Friday after Saintil parked the car next to a
police officer. Coral Springs police Lt. Joe McHugh identified the baby
as Saintil’s son, Josiah Saintil.
Jail records did not show whether Saintil had an attorney.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/national/police-in-florida-find-missing-1-month-old-boy-dead-in-car-trunk-father-in-custody/2012/06/01/gJQAw0oB8U_story.html

Infant was alive when taken from PSL, Broward detectives say

By James Kirley
Published Saturday, June 2, 2012

PORT ST. LUCIE — The 7-week-old son of a Deerfield Beach man charged with first-degree murder in the infant's death was left briefly Thursday night in a home on Southwest Parma Street, but investigators believe the baby left Port St. Lucie alive before dying inside the trunk of a stolen car in Broward County.

Police in Coral Springs arrested Janus Saintil Jr., 24, of Deerfield Beach, shortly after 3 p.m. Friday. He was being held without bond Saturday in the Broward County jail on charges that include four counts of armed kidnapping, armed carjacking, aggravated battery with a deadly weapon and an armed robbery warrant unrelated to the case.

According to the Broward County arrest report, a Coral Springs police officer checked the trunk of the stolen black 2008 Kia when Saintil was arrested and found baby Josiah Saintil dead in a car seat, covered by a diaper bag and blanket. The officer also found a loaded black semi-automatic pistol on the driver's side floor of the car.

An 18-year-old Coral Springs woman who was with Saintil when he was arrested told detectives she had played with baby Josiah late Thursday night inside the car Saintil had driven to her apartment. According to the arrest report, Talia Rodriguez told Broward County sheriff's detectives that Saintil drove away from her residence with the baby about 12:30 a.m. Friday. He returned about 30 minutes later without baby Josiah and spend the night in her apartment.

According to the arrest report, detectives believe Saintil placed his son in the car's trunk, where the infant died.

"Talia Rodriguez claimed that she was in the vehicle for most of the day on (Friday) and said, in a sworn statement, that she did not know that Josiah Saintil was deceased in the trunk as they drove around Coral Springs," the arrest report states.

Rodriquez was not charged.

Results are pending from an autopsy performed Saturday to determine the cause of the baby's death.

The incident began Thursday evening when Saintil, the baby and his mother, and a Broward County man and woman, drove to a North Lauderdale Walmart in the Kia, which is owned by the mother of one of the women. While in the store's parking lot, Saintil and the baby's mother began to argue inside the vehicle.

Police said Saintil pulled a pistol and forced one of the women to drive the car, with all still aboard, north to Port St. Lucie.

They stopped at a home in the 1200 block of Southwest Parma Street, where Saintil allegedly ordered the three adults, all 22, to stay in the car. Detectives said Saintil then went inside, taking the car keys and baby with him.

He came out a short while later without the baby, in the company of three unidentified men who entered a second vehicle. According to the arrest report, Saintil ordered the woman driving the Kia to follow that car to a second home in the 700 block of Southwest Dorchester Street.

There, detectives said, Saintil took cellphones from the three adults and again ordered them to stay in the car while he went briefly indoors.

After returning to the car and ordering its driver to another, unknown, location, detectives said the car stopped at a gasoline station in the 100 block of Northwest Bayshore Boulevard. There, Saintil allegedly ordered the two women to wait outside while he went indoors with the male hostage and ordered him to withdraw cash from an automated teller machine.

Instead, detectives said, the man refused and told the clerk to phone police to report kidnappings.

Saintil then left the three people behind.

"While fleeing, Janus Saintil told (Josiah's mother) that he was going to 'kill' their 2-month-old baby," the arrest report states.

Detectives said Saintil then retrieved the infant from the Southwest Parma Street home and drove south to Broward County.

People at that house Saturday refused to discuss what happened. But neighbors said the street was swarming with law officers about 3 p.m. Friday.

One neighbor, Dean Abbott, said he heard officers call for an evidence bag and saw them remove a white shopping bag from a champagne-colored car at that home.

No one other than Saintil had been arrested by Saturday evening, but the investigation still is open, said Broward Sheriff's spokeswoman Dani Moschella.

Broward County sheriff's detectives are asking anyone who may have seen Saintil after midnight Friday to call Crime Stoppers or Detective John Curcio at 954-321-4210.

http://m.tcpalm.com/news/2012/jun/02/dead-infant-was-alive-when-taken-from-psl-say/

Little Josiah's last moments were spent inside the trunk of a black
Kia Spectra nestled in his car seat beneath a blanket and a diaper bag.


The last words the baby's mother heard before Janus Saintil Jr.
abandoned her and two friends at a gas station were that he would kill
their son. The 24-year-old father sped off in the Kia and made good on
that promise, the Broward Sheriff's Office said.


Saintil, of Deerfield Beach, was charged with the first-degree murder
of Josiah, aggravated battery with a deadly weapon and four counts of
kidnapping. There also was a warrant for his arrest in a prior armed
robbery. He was being held Saturday without bail in Broward County Jail.


By Saturday evening, the Broward Medical Examiner's Office had not
yet ruled on the baby's cause of death. Josiah would have been 2 months
old Tuesday.


His tiny discolored body was found still foaming at the mouth and
nose when a Broward Sheriff's detective made the tragic discovery at the
Palm Terrace condominiums at 11001 Royal Palm Boulevard in Coral
Springs on Friday.


The deadly ordeal began Thursday night after Saintil forced Marissa
Murray, 22, to drive her mother's 2008 Kia Spectra away from a North
Lauderdale Walmart with the baby's mother, Claudia Harriott, Josiah, and
their friend, Andrew Pennant, in tow. Saintil had asked Murray to drop
him off at the Walmart on her way to Harriott's sister's house.


A text that Harriot, 22, sent Saintil earlier Thursday saying she was
breaking up with him for good had set him off, Murray said, and Saintil
asked to see their son. They argued about their relationship in the
car, the baby became fussy and Saintil then turned on them all and
whipped out a gun, she said.


Saintil said he had nothing to live for and was "going to make the
news," said Murray, who was simply thankful to be alive while recalling
the tragic events Saturday.


"I've seen him get mad, but not to this point. He lost his mind," she said, "The look in his eye was evil. It wasn't the same."


In what would be the beginning of a violent three hours, Saintil
ordered Murray to drive to Interstate 95 and then nearly 90 miles to
Port St. Lucie. He told her to speed up her slow driving so as to not
raise suspicions, she said. Her only focus amid the terror was the road
ahead, Murray said.


Meanwhile, Saintil threatened to kill them all at gunpoint and he
pistol-whipped Pennant, 22, when the surprised friend kept turning
around from the front passenger's seat. Harriott and Saintil sat in the
back seat with the baby.


"I thought he was going to kill us right there and then," Murray said.


On the ride north, Saintil requested that Murray play Lil Wayne and
Drake on the radio, and he rapped along to "very violent songs" that
talked about killing and getting money, Murray said. He smoked a few
cigarettes.In the back seat, Saintil hit Harriott and caressed her face
with the gun, even putting it in her mouth and pulling the trigger while
it had the safety lock on, Murray said. He made Harriott sing along
too.


"She was crying, pleading really, to God," Murray said of her longtime friend.


When they reached a home in Port St. Lucie, Saintil took the car keys
and his son inside and ordered the victims wait in the car, the
Sheriff's Office said. He emerged without the baby and in the company of
three other unidentified men.


Those men got into a champagne Lincoln and Saintil had Murray follow
them to another house about five miles away, she said. There, Saintil
rounded up all their cellphones and went inside.


Upon his return, he had Murray drive them to a Hess gas station about
a mile away, where he ordered Pennant to withdraw money from an ATM.


But Pennant refused, raised his voice and instead told an attendant at the gas station to call police.


Saintil seemed to go for his gun, but instead walked back to the car and forced Murray and Harriott out.


He told her he was going to kill the baby and smiled while doing so. "She broke down in the gas station," Murray said.


According to the Sheriff's Office, Saintil then returned for his son
and returned to Broward County while police went to the gas station to
aid the carjacking victims at about 10 p.m. Thursday.


By Friday afternoon, Saintil was found in the stolen car outside the
Coral Springs apartment complex along with Talia Rodriguez, 18. Baby
Josiah was then discovered in the car trunk; a loaded handgun was on the
floorboard of the car on the driver's side.


Rodriguez told investigators that Saintil had arrived to her home
late Thursday and seemed emotional. They talked about their relationship
inside the car, where she played with Josiah, the Sheriff's Office
said.


Saintil left, but returned after midnight Friday without the baby,
Rodriguez told investigators. He spent the night there, and Saintil and
Rodriguez spent most of Friday driving around Coral Springs, according
to the police report.


Unbeknown to Rodriguez, the baby was dead in the trunk, the Sheriff's Office said.


A woman at Saintil's apartment at Tivoli Terrace at Tivoli Park in
Deerfield Beach on Saturday declined to comment. A neighbor and father
of five was in disbelief that Saintil lived just a few doors down.


"It just blows my mind," Tom Gallo said, "Oh, my goodness. … It's got
to hurt anybody. It hurts the mother, it hurts the community. I'd give
my life for my kids."


Meanwhile on Saturday, Harriott's family was attending her
grandmother's funeral, her grand uncle, Bennetto Harriott, said. He said
he never had a chance to meet baby Josiah.


Authorities urge anyone who may have seen Saintil after midnight
Friday call Detective John Curcio at 954-321-4210 or Broward Crime
Stoppers at 954-493-8477

http://www.tcpalm.com/news/2012/jun/03/father-of-murdered-infant-said-he-would-kill-his/

Woman saw child shortly before he was killed

A woman tells WPBF 25 News Janus Saintil brought Josiah Saintil to her home Thursday night, hours before he killed the 1-year-old.

VIDEO AT LINK

Read more: http://www.wpbf.com/news/south-florida/treasure-coast/Woman-saw-child-shortly-before-he-was-killed/-/8882916/14505580/-/7h63w4z/-/index.html#ixzz1wxiJFQ7G

The first frantic 911 calls have been released in the case of an infant
found dead in the trunk of a car and the three adults who were kidnapped
and dropped off at a gas station in Port St Lucie.

Gas Station Attendant: I have a customer here saying that someone's trying to hold them hostage.

RELATED: Father jailed after dead baby found in trunk of car

The
911 call coming from the gas station where accused kidnapper, Janus
Saintil, dropped off three adults he took for a ride at gunpoint from
Broward County to Port St Lucie. Taking off after the gas station
attendant made that call. But most tragically in all of this is the
death of his own one-month-old son, found in his trunk.

911 Operator: She's crying?

Gas Station Attendant: People are crying and yelling, yeah. Something about a baby too.

The
baby still alive at this point, believed dropped off at a house in Port
St Lucie. Saintil apparently on his way to take the baby back with him
to Coral Springs while the 911 call is still taking place.

Gas Station Attendant: And the baby's still in the car with him?

Gas Station Attendant: No, the baby's not in the car with him. The baby's at someone's house.

It
was late last Friday afternoon that police found the one-month-old dead
in the trunk of Saintil's car. Right now, it's still unknown whether or
not the baby died in the trunk, or was put there after he died. As for
why this all may have happened, Marissa Murray, who was in the car, says
it all came about over a text from his child's mother. Marissa says the
mother wanted to break up with Saintil, he was angry told her he had
nothing to live for and was "going to make the news."

http://www.cbs12.com/news/top-stories/stories/vid_777.shtml

911 Call Reveals Details Of Infant Found Dead In Car Trunk


June 11, 2012 8:31 AM

MIAMI (CBS4) – New information has been released in the kidnapping of
a South Florida mother whose baby was found dead in the trunk of a car.

In a 911 call to police the caller is heard naming the suspect.

A Port St. Lucie gas station attendant obtained information from the
three adult victims and then passed it along to the dispatcher.

The caller mentions “something about a baby”, not knowing that baby would be found dead the very next day.

“People crying and yelling, yeah,” the caller said as he listened to
the victims tell him what happened. “Something about a baby too.”
In the recording, you can hear the caller ask for the suspect’s name. He tells the dispatcher “Janus Saintil”.

Police say Saintil, 24, of Deerfield Beach kidnapped three adults
along with his own son, nearly two-month-old Josiah. According to the
police report, Saintil was with his girlfriend Claudia Harriot, Marissa
Murray, Andrew Pennant and the baby in the parking lot of a North
Lauderdale Walmart on Thursday night. While inside a black Kia, Saintil
and Harriot got into an argument over their relationship. Saintil, said
police, pulled a gun and threatened everyone in the car.

One of the hostages was driving during the ordeal. Marissa Murray
said she was taking orders from Saintil. In a June 2nd interview with
CBS 4 News, she said she was told to stop at a home in Port Saint Lucie.

“When we got to the first house, he said don’t go anywhere I’m not
done with you all and he took the keys from the car and he took the baby
in the house and he came back,” Murray said.

After another stop, Saintil forced the group to a nearby gas station
where he demanded one of the hostages take out money from an ATM. He
refused and the others started begging for help. The gas station
attendant said Saintil drove away, leaving the hostages behind.


In one portion of the call, you can hear the confusion over who the suspect is.

911 Caller: “He has a gun too.”
Dispatcher: “Who has a gun? She has a gun?”
911 Caller: “Who has a gun? The driver? The driver has a gun.”
Dispatcher: “Her name, it’s a girl?”
911 Caller: “It’s a girl or a guy? A guy with dreads.”

It wasn’t until the next day that a police officer in Coral Springs
spotted Saintil and the car. Inside, the authorities found baby Josiah
dead in the trunk. Police say foam was coming from his nose and mouth.

“He said the devil was after his child,” Murray said of Saintil’s
alleged actions. “Like the devil wanted his child and I guess he had to
sacrifice his child.”

Saintil is being held at the Broward County Jail with no bond on charges of kidnapping and murder.

http://miami.cbslocal.com/2012/06/11/911-call-reveals-details-of-infant-found-dead-in-car-trunk/

Man Indicted in Infant Son's Death
Murder, kidnapping charges for father of boy found in trunk

By Brian Hamacher
Friday, Jun 22, 2012
Updated 2:09 PM EDT

The South Florida man accused of murdering his infant son and kidnapping the child's mother and her friends was indicted by the Broward Grand Jury, officials said Friday.

Janus Saintil, 24, was indicted Thursday on charges of first-degree murder, four counts of armed kidnapping, three counts of armed robbery, one count of armed carjacking, one count of attempted armed robbery, one count of aggravated battery with a deadly weapon and one count of possession of a firearm by a convicted felon.

Police say the incident began the night of May 31, when Saintil kidnapped his 2-month-old son, Josiah Saintil, his son’s mother and two friends after some type of argument. Authorities said Saintil dropped off the baby at someone’s house and forced the others to drive to a Port St. Lucie gas station, demanding one of the victims take money out of an ATM machine.

At the gas station, one of the victims called for help, prompting Saintil to flee in black Kia he was driving, authorities said.

Saintil was arrested outside a Coral Springs apartment the following day after an Amber Alert was issued for the infant child. The alert was called off just a few hours later, though, when police found the two-month-old baby dead inside the trunk of the black Kia Saintil had been driving.

The baby was found underneath a diaper bag and blanket and was "cold to the touch and foaming at the nose and mouth," according to a Broward Sheriff's Office arrest report.

Saintil is being held without bond at the Broward County jail. It's unknown whether he has an attorney.

http://www.nbcmiami.com/news/Man-Indicted-in-Infant-Sons-Death-160033105.html