An Oklahoma man was sentenced to 24 years in prison and an additional six years on supervised release for fatally abusing and starving his 7-year-old daughter last year, bringing her to the hospital only when she “had signs of rigor mortis and possible injuries internal and external.”
Anthony Yonko, 38, pleaded guilty on Thursday to one count of second-degree murder of a child in connection with the death of his daughter Violet Mitchell, who he brought severely emaciated to a hospital in August 2024 shortly before she was pronounced dead. Mitchell’s mother will stand trial for second-degree murder next month, and her aunt and uncle were both sentenced to 20 years in prison after pleading guilty to the same crime.
“[A doctor] stated when working on the child numerous amounts of black and dark red secretions came from the child’s mouth when pushing on her stomach area,” an affidavit reviewed by Law&Crime stated. “The child was extremely malnourished weighing only 25 pounds and approximately 37 inches tall.”
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On Aug. 2, 2024, officers with the Midwest City Police Department’s Investigations Unit responded to a call from the county medical examiner’s office about a child who was brought to Saint Anthony’s Midwest Hospital, located east of Oklahoma City. Mitchell was reportedly pronounced dead shortly after her arrival…