Mugshot: Man charged in Orange Co. child's 'violent' death

Yovahnis Roque, 26. Yovahnis Roque, 26. Image 1 of / 24 Caption Close Mugshot: Man charged in Orange Co. child's 'violent' death 1 / 24 Back to Gallery

As rain battered the street shortly after noon on Tuesday, a man in a red Nissan Altima flew down the road, screeched to a stop and ran to a blue house at the corner of Azalea Avenue and Zinnia Street in Orange — driven there by word of an unspeakable family tragedy.

About an hour prior, the Orange Police Department received a call from a woman screaming that her "cousin just killed his daughter" in the house next door.

A 26-year-old Orange man now faces a charge of capital murder. He is accused of causing the "violent death" of his 2-year-old child.

The toddler was killed in a bedroom of their home in the 500 block of Azalea Avenue, according to information from Orange Police Capt. Robert Enmon.

As word spread that the child was found dead, family members began to fill the small roadway.

They met at the blue house and greeted each other with teary eyes and hugs of condolences, but yellow police tape prohibited them from entering the home where the child's body remained.

"I live right at the end of the road. I just went to get groceries, I can't believe this," said Josie Jefferson, who has lived in the area for more than 16 years.

"The neighborhood is generally quiet with little traffic. My God, a child?"

Enmon said the father, child and grandmother lived in the residence, but only the father and child were home at the time of the child's death.

Yovahnis Roque, 26, was arrested at the scene without incident. Enmon said he is cooperating in the investigation.

As of Tuesday evening, police had not released a possible motive or the exact cause of death.

Roque has been charged with capital murder, which is allowed in the state of Texas if the victim is under the age of 10.



erica.apodaca@beaumont enterprise.com