Mom Throws 18-Month-Old Baby Off Louisiana Bridge Into River: Police

A mother threw her 18-month-old toddler off a bridge in Louisiana, police said.

The Houma Police Department (HPD) said it was alerted to reports of a child being thrown into the Bayou Terrebonne stream from the Liberty Street Bridge at about 4:50 p.m. on Friday, September 23.

According to Louisiana's Department of Children and Family Services, there were 2,096 investigations into allegations of child abuse in August 2022.

In a September 26 Facebook statement, HPD Lt. Travis Theriot said: "The investigation thus far revealed that the child was thrown from the bridge by his mother for an unknown reason as there is no known motive.

"Moments later the suspect whom was identified as Asha Randolph, 30, entered Bayou Terrebonne and pulled the child from the water.

"Officers also learned that at the time of the incident Asha had left her 8 and 6-year-old child in her vehicle unsupervised."

The toddler was transported to a nearby medical facility where he was treated and was on Monday expected to recover from his injuries.

Randolph was arrested and charged with attempted first-degree murder, child desertion and obstruction of justice.

Theriot said the police had launched an investigation and that more details about the case could be released at a later date.

Anyone with any information has been encouraged to submit a tip anonymously through Crimestoppers Bayou Region by phone at 1-800-743-7433 or online at www.crimestoppersbr.org.

Tipsters could be eligible for a reward of up to $1,000 in cash if the information leads to an arrest.

Newsweek has contacted the HPD for comment.

In July, a toddler was allegedly killed by a 16-year-old girl in Florida after she accidentally smothered her to death while trying to keep it quiet.

Police said the older sister placed a pillow over the face of the toddler in an attempt to get her to quiet down. The sister then left the room and when she returned the toddler was unresponsive.

In a separate case, a woman was arrested earlier in September after her three children were found drowned on a beach in Brooklyn, New York's Coney Island.

The children were found unresponsive on the shoreline near West 35th Street and were taken to Coney Island Hospital where they were later pronounced dead.

Erin Merdy, 30, was arrested on September 12 after she was found close to where the children's bodies were found.

Merdy was charged with killings 7-year-old Zachary, 4-year-old Lilana and 3-month-old Oliver, according to CBS New York.