Galveston Tragedy: Toddler Dies, Mother Arrested for Allegedly Dropping Child From Third-story Balcony
A Houston mother has been arrested after police said she purposefully dropped her 17-month-old daughter from a hotel balcony in Galveston.
Police responded to complaints of an abandoned toddler at about 9:45 a.m. on Wednesday. Police arrived to find the toddler, Hannah Yonko, bleeding on the pavement. Emergency personnel determined she required life-saving care and began administering it. She was later taken to the trauma center at UTMB Galveston.
She was pronounced dead at about 10:30 a.m., shortly after arriving at the hospital.
Hannah’s body was found with three puncture wounds, according to the probable cause affidavit. An officer later discovered her mother, Channel Yonko, 30, crying and pleading for assistance. She began making comments about her daughter, claiming she might be ill. Yonko was subsequently detained by police for additional interrogation.
Her sister, Mercedes Yonko, informed authorities she was sharing a hotel room with her at the Beach Front Palms Hotel. Channel went to Galveston to spend time with her sister. Mercedes claimed Channel had sole custody of her daughter.
On the day of Hannah’s death, the sisters gathered in another area. Mercedes claimed she spotted Channel pushing a stroller. She assumed Hannah was inside the stroller when she saw her sister, but subsequently told authorities she never saw the infant. Nonetheless, she stated that she had no reason to believe the infant was not in the stroller.
Mercedes stated that she wanted to return to the hotel room, but Channel told her not to.
Channel allegedly advised her sister “don’t go back to the hotel” multiple times. Mercedes thought Channel’s statement weird.
While checking the hotel’s parking garage, two cops discovered a trash bag in a garbage can with a key card, a “skinning” knife with a black handle, plastic sand toys, unused diapers, and unopened kid’s snacks. Police later discovered CCTV of Channel moving the pram in the hotel lobby.
Another video showed Hannah falling from the third floor and landing in the grass before rolling onto the concrete pavement, where she was discovered. Channel is charged with capital murder. She is being held in the Galveston County Jail without bond. Her counsel was not listed.
“This is a terrible crime. “All children deserve to feel safe when they are with loved ones, especially their mother,” stated Galveston Police Chief Doug Balli.
“Nobody ever wants to make this call. No first responder wants to come to the scene of an infant who is seriously injured and may not survive.”
Reference:
Texas mom accused of murder after her toddler daughter fell to her death from third-story balcony