An Indiana man, aged 26, is facing a potential nine-year prison term after being convicted of neglecting his two young children. The neglect resulted in the death of his three-month-old daughter, who was found lifeless in her baby swing. The man, Jacob Vera, confessed to the neglect of a dependent, a level 3 felony. Initially, he was accused of neglect of a dependent resulting in death, a more severe level 1 felony.
On March 25, 2023, around 8:30 p.m., the Muncie Police Department received a call from the Bestway Inn at 4000 N. Broadway, reporting a cardiac arrest. Upon their arrival, the officers discovered the infant, Isabella Vera, unresponsive in her swing. The first responders on the scene pronounced her dead.
The children’s mother told the police that she had left her two children, including a 16-month-old, in Vera’s care around 2 p.m. that day before she left for work. When she returned over six hours later, she found the older child in distress and Vera was nowhere to be found. She noticed that Isabella, swaddled in a blanket and in her swing, was not moving as she usually would when picked up.
Medical personnel who arrived at the scene determined that rigor mortis had set in, indicating that Isabella had been dead for at least two hours. Meanwhile, Vera had left the scene with the family’s phone. A motel resident told detectives that Vera had offered him $130 for a ride to Chicago, which he declined. Vera then managed to get a friend to drive him to Peoria, Illinois, a distance of over 250 miles. When the police caught up with him and questioned him about his departure, Vera stated that he left to “avoid any drama” with the children’s mother.
The medical examiner’s report revealed that Isabella had died of asphyxiation. As part of his plea deal, Vera is expected to serve nine years in prison. His sentencing is scheduled for December 1.
Isabella’s obituary described her as a “beautiful little girl, with an infectious smile and beautiful eyes left our world way too early.” It further stated that “Bella was an incredibly happy baby, with a heart-warming personality all to her own,” and that “She was safe and loving in her mother’s arms, always with her pacifier and a stuffed animal not far away.”