A 26-year-old Tennessee mother accused of killing her 2-year-old son has been apprehended by federal officials in Texas, nearly a year after the child was battered to death.
Sharday Bakare was arrested on Wednesday and charged with one count of first-degree murder, aggravated child neglect, and aggravated child abuse in the gruesome murder of baby Anthony Jay Bakare, authorities said.
Anthony Drake Andrews, Bakare’s boyfriend at the time, was indicted in May for first-degree murder and severe child abuse. According to records, he is currently jailed in Shelby County Jail on a $250,000 bond.
According to a probable cause document, at 5:49 a.m. on September 4, 2023, the Memphis Police and Fire Departments responded to a call of an unresponsive 2-year-old at a home on the 2600 block of Margot Street. When first responders arrived at the scene, they discovered the boy — later identified as Anthony Bakare — not breathing and “bleeding from the mouth with bruising on the abdomen, sides, and back, as well as a long bruise on the right side of the face that went from the forehead area to the lower jaw.”
Emergency medical staff conducted CPR on the kid before transporting him to a nearby hospital, where he was declared dead.
Back at the house, authorities questioned Bakare and Andrews about how the boy sustained his injuries. Bakare told police that she last saw her son about 11:15 p.m. the previous evening and that he was in “good health.” At the time, she stated that she left her son in the care of Andrews and went to sleep.
Bakare stated in her police statement that she was “aware” that Andrews “disciplines” her kid and had previously witnessed him striking the youngster with “a belt or braided dog toy” while correcting him. Furthermore, Bakare allegedly stated that she had recently discovered “excess bruising” on her son, but Andrews claimed he had simply fallen off the bed.
Police then told Andrews his Miranda rights, and he agreed to give a statement.
“During the statement, Anthony Andrews admitted to hitting the child with a belt ‘harder than (he) should’ a few weeks before this incident, as well as striking the child 7 to 8 times with a braided dog toy in the back, face, and buttocks area the morning of Sept. 4, 2023,” according to the waiver. “Mr. Andrews also admitted to striking the child with an open hand in the chest at least once or twice before shoving the child into a corner.”
Andrews stated that after the alleged beating, he returned the toddler to his bed. Several minutes later, he stated that the youngster slipped out of bed, and he discovered Anthony Bakare was lifeless.
According to records, Andrews is scheduled to appear in court again on July 24.
Bakare was booked into Shelby County Jail after being extradited from Texas, and she is currently being held on a $1 million bail.