A 13-year-old Florida boy who allegedly stabbed and killed his mother while his 14-day old baby sister lay in a crib next to her has had his mugshot released.
Derek Rosa, from Hialeah, Florida, is accused of savagely murdering his mother, Irena Garcia, 39, in her bedroom last Thursday.
When responding officers arrived on scene Garcia was lying dead with multiple stab wounds to the neck as her new born daughter lay unharmed nearby her.
Rosa appeared stoic in the mugshot, his eyes deadpan, after he was slapped with a first degree murder charge.
The young teen will be tried as an adult and did not appear at his first hearing in court today. He’s being held at the Miami-Dade Corrections & Rehabilitation facility.
13-year-old Derek Rosa, who allegedly stabbed and killed his mother while his 14-day-old baby sister lay in a crib next to her has had his mugshot released
Rosa’s mother, Irena Garcia, 39, had just given birth to his younger sister two weeks before. The baby was found lying beside her dead body, unharmed
Rosa’s father and grandmother appeared on behalf of the juvenile in court on Friday with the Miami-Dade State Attorney’s Office officials confirming a grand jury has formally charged him.
Emotional pleas emphasizing support for the young boy were heard in court with his father making the case that the incident was out of character.
‘It’s very unfortunate that this tragedy occurred,’ said his father, ‘but this child is very humble, very peaceful and no one could imagine that this would ever happen.’
Rosa has been ordered to be held without bond and transferred to the Metro West Detention Center.
He’ll remain there until the judge reviews the defense’s request to return the 13-year-old to juvenile custody.
Lt. Eddie Rodriguez, a spokesperson for the Hialeah Police Department, told WPLG-TV the honors student called 911 just after 11.30pm to report that he had ‘just murdered his mother.’
A copy of the dispatch call was also released by police a few days before the first hearing.
Rosa allegedly told the dispatcher that he took pictures of his dead mother and sent them to friends
Rosa posed with his mother and stepfather in matching outfits for a maternity photo shoot
In the transcript, the dispatcher can be heard asking Rosa, ‘Why did you kill your mom?’ but no response was recorded.
Rosa allegedly told the dispatcher that he’d taken pictures of his dead mother and sent them to his friends.
He is heard saying: ‘I took pictures and I told my friends about it. Is that bad?’
Police are yet to confirm the existence of pictures or messages to Rosa’s friends.
Its been claimed he also said that he was ‘very sad’ and wanted to ‘shoot himself with a gun.’
Police believe the boy had waited until his mother had fallen asleep and then stabbed her multiple times.
Rosa is an honor student at iMater Charter Middle/High School.
Lieutenant Rodriguez said it was ‘not what you’d think or expect walking into that home or seeing that crime scene.’
Footage from the scene showed the boy walking out of the apartment as he was taken into police custody.
One neighbor, Lazaro Rodriguez, said: ‘I was shocked, just shocked by the news.
‘He was always with his mom, calm, he would help her carry packages or shopping bags.
‘I never saw anything abnormal with him. I don’t know what could’ve happened.’
Rodriguez told Local 10 News last week that the boy had no history of mental health issues and police had not been to the family’s apartment before.
He said: ‘Neighbors don’t know of any problems inside the home. So this has detectives and us dumbfounded.’
Rosa lived in the apartment with his mother, newborn sister and his stepfather, who works as a truck driver – all of whom he reportedly got along well with.
Rosa was taken into custody by police on October 12. A copy of the 911 dispatch call was released by police this week
The block of flats where Rosa lived in Florida with his family
Rosa was alone in the apartment with his baby sister and their mother on Thursday evening. His stepfather was reportedly away in Georgia at the time.
Other family members were seen arriving at the apartment after Rosa was taken into custody.
A photo of the family shared by local news outlets just before Garcia gave birth shows Rosa and his stepfather in matching light pink polo shirts and khakis, lovingly cradling Garcia’s baby bump.
Officials said his baby sister is now with their grandmother. Rosa is set to face a judge in an arraignment hearing next week.