Trigger Warning: This article contains references to the alleged child physical abuse that some readers may find distressing.
Utah authorities conducted a 17-month-long investigation that has led to criminal charges against a father for being involved in the death of his six-month-old daughter. According to law enforcement, he is accused in the death of his child, who was discovered in a basement while the suspect exhibited “no remorse.”
32-year-old C. Neal Colby is accused of reckless child abuse homicide, a first-degree felony, and child endangerment resulting in the death of baby Celia Colby. He is being held at the Salt Lake County jail without bail.
On the fateful day of January 17, 2025, police in Murray, a suburb of Salt Lake City, rushed to the Colby residence shortly before 10 a.m. following reports of an infant in “full arrest.” Upon arriving, they found the father in the front yard, waiting for them. He then led them to the basement. Emergency personnel attempted lifesaving measures. However, the Utah child was pronounced dead on the way to the hospital.
According to a responding police officer, the mother of the child was “visibly distraught and yelling at Colby that he was responsible for [the baby’s] death,” after the child was taken to the hospital, local news outlet ABC4 reported.
Investigators spent the next 17 months piecing together the exact circumstances surrounding the infant’s final hours. According to court filings, authorities found the baby inside a “dirty” basement environment contaminated with both human and animal waste. Additionally, they discovered drug paraphernalia and found jars of THC wax stored alongside baby food.
Investigators stated that Colby displayed a chilling lack of emotion in the wake of the tragedy. Celia, remembered by those who knew her for an “energized spirit,” passed away just one day before turning seven months old.
Autopsy results reveal that Celia sustained multiple facial injuries before her death. This raises critical questions for investigators despite the cause and manner of death remaining officially undetermined.
According to a probable cause arrest affidavit, a medical examiner identified distinct bruising on the infant’s nose, right cheek, and chin area.
“This pattern of injury can be seen when a caregiver pinches the nose shut, causing injury to the skin. An asphyxia death may not be identifiable at autopsy,” she opined, adding that there is a possibility “her airway was manually obstructed by an adult.”
The condition she was discovered in also raises serious red flags. The examiner dismisses Colby’s initial claim that he “wrapped a blanket around her tightly that stopped at her shoulder,” but she had pulled it up over her face.
“A child this age typically would be able to free their airway from a blanket that they pulled up over their face, as she was known to roll and push herself up from a prone position, both activities indicating that she was developing normally. If she were face up and the blanket had simply been pulled up over her face, I found it unlikely that she suffocated in this way,” she said.
According to court records, the infant’s mother reported that Celia developed flu-like symptoms, including fever and coughing on the night before her death. After giving her medication and scheduling a pediatrician visit, she brought the baby downstairs around 2:30 a.m. to stay with Colby.
Hours later, Colby woke the mother by shouting. She discovered the infant lying stiff on Colby’s bed with red fluid coming from her mouth.
The mother immediately initiated CPR and dialed 911 herself, stating that “Colby would not call.”
When questioned by Murray police, Colby claimed the Utah baby drank a bottle and fell asleep shortly after arriving. He told officers he then went upstairs to watch an hour-long YouTube video while the child slept.
During police questioning, Colby claimed he discovered the infant with a gray liquid around her mouth and pressed on her chest to clear her airway before yelling for her mother and attempting CPR.
Investigators noted in the arrest affidavit, however, that Colby displayed erratic behavior. He was wailing loudly when officers were looking or speaking to him, but using a vape device when he thought they were not watching.
“I feel so f—ing awful, I don’t know how it happened,” Colby allegedly told police.
Disclaimer: The Inquisitr could not independently confirm the facts of this incident and is reporting based on the information available within the public record.
