Child reported missing found at bottom of 10-foot hole; mother charged in her death

The mother of a 10-month-old baby has been charged with manslaughter after law enforcement officials say she dropped the child down a 10-foot deep pipe access area covered in mud and water and left her there.

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Prosecutor Michael Nobles said that Persia Nelson, 24, dropped 10-month-old Halo R. Branton down a pipe access area at a General Electric campus “and left the child there essentially to die,” the Schenectady Times Union reported.

Halo was reported missing on Saturday night, and after law enforcement searched the area overnight an Amber Alert was issued at 10:10 a.m. Sunday.

At 12:36 p.m. Sunday, the alert was canceled. State Police initially reported the girl was found in good health, but later removed the characterization of the child’s condition, WNYW reported.

Lt. Ryan Macherone, the Schenectady Police Department’s public information officer, said Sunday that a team of officers found the girl in an area between Hillhurst Park and the General Electric campus Sunday afternoon. She was rushed to Ellis Hospital, where she was pronounced dead.

Prosecutors told the court that Nelson had only been in the area since November, and before moving to Schenectady to be with a boyfriend, she stayed at a shelter in Albany County.

According to police, she was taken into custody around 6 a.m. Sunday.

Though Nelson is currently facing manslaughter charges, Nobles told the judge that an autopsy is being performed Monday and that “significantly and enhanced charges” could be added as the case progresses.

Halo would have turned 11 months old on Thursday, according to The Daily Gazette.

Nelson’s bail was set at $500,000 cash or $1 million bond. She was sent back to the Schenectady County Jail to await a preliminary hearing on Thursday.

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