Texas teen allegedly chokes newborns in wild hospital attack, shouts ‘die!’
An 18-year-old Texas man visiting his girlfriend in labor went on a rampage at a hospital, where he assaulted several staff members and two babies who turned blue when he choked them, police said.
The unhinged attack began after Marcus Dewayne McCowan Jr. went to the Odessa Regional Medical Center on Monday evening to visit his girlfriend, who was in labor, news station KMID reported.
At one point, the teen began acting oddly and went to the nurses’ station, where he grabbed the arm of a nurse and made “an unintelligible statement” before being asked to leave, the outlet said.
McCowan began running back and forth in the hall in a manner the staff found “odd and unreasonable,” according to an affidavit cited by KMID.
He then ran at “full speed” toward two nurses — Haley Sanchez and Kassandra Reyes — and a mom who was about to leave the hospital with her newborn, the Odessa American reported.
The suspect screamed and shoved Sanchez to the floor while trying to gain access to the nursery, according to the affidavit.
McCowan then snatched the newborn from the mom and ran into the lactation room, where he grabbed the child by the neck with both hands, causing the baby’s face to turn blue, officials said.
Nurses managed to save the baby from the maniac, who then barged into the nursery, where respiratory therapist Martha Fuentes saw him choking another baby whose face and lips turned color, according to the Odessa American.
McCowan allegedly told the girl to “die!” as he choked her — and made a motion as if he was about to throw her to the floor, KMID reported.
Fuentes managed to intervene and protected the newborn from further injury as security officer Lori Tavarez arrived, officials said.
When cops arrived, the suspect reportedly tried to grab one officer’s gun.
McCowan has been charged with two counts of attempted capital murder, possession of a controlled substance, attempt to take a weapon from an officer, assault of a public servant, resisting arrest, criminal trespass and assault.
Police found a THC vape pen on the suspect, the Odessa American said.
Stacey Brown, president of Odessa Regional Medical Center, said in a statement: “I want to express my sincere gratitude to those who responded to the incident last evening, especially our nurses, therapists and security team who worked diligently to protect innocent babies and others.
“The staff and physicians, along with the response team from the Odessa Police Department, are incredible heroes and we are all so grateful to each of them,” Brown continued.
“Our attention is now focused on caring for and supporting those who were impacted by this including our patients, their families, and our staff,” she added.