Mary Beth Cole said her 3-year-old grandson Jaeden Cole loved trains, flowers and always brightened her day.
“In my worst day he could make me smile, it didn’t matter what I was going through, just to see his face and his smile and hear his voice,” Cole said.
Jaeden died five days ago.
RELATED: Cleveland toddler dies from injuries, babysitter charged
Cleveland detectives are investigating the circumstances around his death.
Police were called to the west side about an unresponsive child.
Jaeden died two days later after brain surgery.
Police arrested the mother’s boyfriend, 28-year-old Emmanuel Galarza, who was babysitting.
This arrest warrant says Galarza admitted he hit the boy who was on top of a bunk bed, and claimed Jaeden then fell to the ground, causing severe head injuries.
His grandmother and prosecutors at the Justice Center don’t believe Jaeden’s injuries were consistent with a fall.
“It was somebody at the hospital who indicated to me that this wasn’t something that Jaeden just had an accident, but that this was something that was done to Jaeden and that was based on what they saw through their own examination,” Cole said.
So far, Galarza has been charged with child endangerment.
“To just talk about neglect or endangerment is so far from the truth. That’s what we thought initially, but as the story unfolds from the doctors and police officers we understand it was so much deeper than that,” Cole said.
Galarza could face more charges when the prosecutor takes the case to a grand jury.
“He needs to never be around children again, that’s how we all feel and he needs to be locked away for good,” Cole said.
Galarza will be arraigned in court at the Justice Center on Oct. 16.
