Tomah man charged in connection to infant death, domestic abuse

MONROE COUNTY, Wis. (WEAU) - A Tomah man is charged in connection to the death of his infant son and an incident of domestic abuse against the infant’s mother that happened earlier this year.

According to a criminal complaint, 21-year-old Daimon Verken is charged in connection to the death of his infant son which happened on April 17, 2023. Verken is also accused of physically abusing the infant’s mother five days earlier.

Verken is charged with neglecting a child-consequence is death; felony intimidation of a victim, domestic abuse; possession of THC; possession of drug paraphernalia; battery, domestic abuse; and disorderly conduct, domestic abuse.

Early in the morning on April 17, 2023, Monroe County Communications received two calls about a non-responsive infant. Tomah Area Ambulance and Tomah Police were sent to 321 Murdock St. in Tomah where they found the three-month-old not breathing.

Verken and another man were on the scene when authorities arrived.

The report states that the infant died. The autopsy showed no injuries or natural causes of death. Initial findings report the death as sudden unexpected infant death (SUID). The report goes on to explain that it is difficult to tell the difference between intentional and accidental suffocation and SUID.

In a later interview, the other man who was at the scene talked about Verken’s anger issues, including incidents that involved shaking and yelling at the infant. He told authorities that he had suspicions about what had happened to the baby.

During the investigation, the infant’s mother raised concerns about Verken wrapping the baby up too tightly in his blanket on several occasions. She talked about him having a difficult time doing care tasks for the baby.

The infant’s mother also said that she left Verken on April 12, 2023, following physical abuse by him.

Court records show that a cash bond of $25,000, with conditions, is set for Verken. He is scheduled to appear in court on Jan. 3, 2024.