Yemissi Keto, Waukee, Iowa mom pours bleach over 1 year old’s face, smothers him to death convicted with the woman to now spend the rest of her life behind bars without any parole.
An Iowa mother accused of pouring bleach over her 1 year old infant son’s face and then smothering the boy to death has been convicted of murder and will now spend the rest of her life behind bars.
A jury in Dallas County, Iowa, on Thursday found Yemissi N. Keto guilty on one count of first-degree murder and one count of child endangerment resulting in death according to WeareIowa.
The charges stem from an August 31, 2023, incident which involved police responding to ‘an unknown problem,’ at the woman’s Waukee residence.
After bleach failed to make boy pass out the mother then used her own hands to kill the boy
Upon arriving at the scene, first responders said they located a juvenile male — identified in court documents as ‘DK’ — in an upstairs bedroom in the home. The child had no pulse and was unresponsive.
Emergency medical personnel attempted lifesaving procedures to resuscitate the boy but were unsuccessful. He was pronounced dead at the scene.
While in the residence, police said they found ‘several opened bottles of bleach and cleaning substances in the area surrounding DK.’ Officers also ‘detected the strong odor of bleach’ and other chemical cleaning agents and noted that the bedroom carpet surrounding DK’s body was wet, as was the floor of the bathroom connected to the bedroom.
Investigators said the woman who identified as the boy’s mother confessed to knowingly killing DK in bizarrely brutal fashion.
‘During the interview, Yemissi (Keto) admitted to holding DK on the ground and pouring bleach or another cleaning substance over his face,’ police wrote in the affidavit, noting that she did so ‘with the intent to kill DK.’
When the bleach failed to make DK ‘pass out,’ police said that Keto decided to kill her son using her own hands, lawandcrime reported.
‘After pouring said substance on his face, Yemissi (Keto) utilized her hand to cover DK’s nose and mouth, causing him to suffocate and stop breathing. Yesmissi (Keto) admitted these actions were taken with the intent to kill DK,’ the affidavit states. ‘Keto, the parent of DK, did commit acts of torture and cruelty, which were intended to cause serious injury.’
Of note during police interviewing and proceedings, Keto used a French translator.
Keto is currently scheduled to appear in court before Judge Thomas Patrick Murphy on April 26 for her sentencing hearing. However, under Iowa state law, any individual found guilty of first-degree murder is required to serve a mandatory sentence of life in prison without the possibility for parole.
To date it remained unclear why the mother sought to murder her own child along with the fathers whereabouts.
