The 6-year-old North Chicago boy found dead in an abandoned Indiana home last week showed evidence of hypothermia and had “partially frozen” internal organs, according to a new coroner’s report.
The autopsy on Damari Perry’s body comes after police charged his mother and two siblings in his death last week after authorities dismissed their claims that the youngster went missing.
The Lake County Coroner’s Office said Tuesday that Perry’s body was partially burned and appeared to have an injury to his right leg when he was found Saturday in Gary, Indiana.
The autopsy found “scattered ecchymosis on the right leg, extreme cold core temperature, and partially frozen internal organs” and said the boy’s body was naked, WMAQ-TV said.
Perry was reported missing on Jan. 5, with his 16-year-old sister telling cops she fell asleep at a party and he wandered off — a story police called “completely false.”
Last week, Jannie Perry, 38, the boy’s mother, was charged with first-degree murder and concealment of a homicidal death in the case.
The youngster’s brother, 20-year-old Jeremiah Perry, was charged with aggravated battery causing great bodily harm to a child under 12, and a second sibling, who was not identified because she’s a minor, was charged with concealing her brother’s body.
Prosecutors said in court that Damari “did something to upset the family” on Dec. 29 and was punished by being placed in a cold shower for an unspecified amount of time.
Jannie Perry was taken to the hospital Saturday, but her son was held on $3 million bail.
The FBI and police continue to investigate the case.