An Idaho couple was arrested for trying to pass off her 12-day-old son’s suffocation death as sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS) in December last year.
Allysen Armenta, 28, and Brian Lemke, 32, were charged with four felony counts of injury to a child, destruction of evidence, failing to report or delaying reporting a death, and resisting and obstructing law enforcement.
The incident came to light when Nampa police responded to a 911 call from the child’s father, Brian Lemke, 32, on December 16, 2025, at around 3.32 a.m. to the 300 block of Lone Star Road. Lemke called police to a house where he claimed Benjamin, also called Benji, died. According to police, Armenta was “hiding in a camp trailer in the backyard” at the time.
After the investigation, detectives determined the infant died in a different trailer and was moved.
The coroner officially ruled the cause of death as suffocation, confirming that the newborn suffocated inside the filthy trailer, which was filled with trash, food, dirt, cigarettes, and animal feces. A detective, who testified in court, called it one of the most disgusting places he had ever seen.
Armenta also admitted to co-sleeping with Benji and keeping him in an “unfit for living” home. Armenta and Lemke allegedly texted each other after their child’s death instead of immediately seeking help or calling police.
Armenta and Lemke claimed to have found Benji unconscious in a bassinet, attempting to pass off the suffocation death as a SIDS incident.
As part of a plea deal with the Canyon County Prosecutor’s Office, Armenta was set to plead guilty on July 30 to failure to notify and injury to a child, with two other charges dropped.
However, Judge Thomas Witney halted the hearing after Armenta made new statements about the hours after Benji’s death before her attorney stopped her. According to news outlet Idaho News, Judge Witney said, “A legal issue has come up. It is necessary to give the attorneys time to conduct more legal research before we move forward.”
After appearing at the rescheduled hearing on August 20, Armenta pleaded guilty to three felony counts: injury to a child plus two felony evidence-destruction counts via Alford pleas. She faces up to 20 years since each felony carries up to 10 years. Armenta is scheduled to appear before the court on November 3.
In July, Lemke was sentenced to spend between six and 15 years in a state correctional facility for failure to report a death and evidence destruction.
Notably, both Armenta and Lemke had prior felony injury-to-child convictions from 2019 after three toddlers were found in a house full of garbage, moldy food, and knives. The charges were twice reduced to misdemeanors for each parent, and both served 180 days in jail after violating parole.
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The couple has lost parental rights to five children since 2019, all subsequently adopted out of foster care.
Moreover, Benji’s death has inspired three bills, including the Urgent Infant Care Act, also known as Benji’s Law. The law, which quickens the timeline for child welfare, took effect in July 2026.
Disclaimer: The Inquisitr could not independently verify the facts of this incident and is reporting based on the information available within the public record.
