Mom calls 911 about 4-year-old son, cops say. She’s accused of starving him to death

A mom was arrested after being accused of starving her 4-year-old son to death, Delaware officials said.

Mercedes Ferguson, 30, called 911 in August “in reference to CPR” on her son, according to a Facebook post by New Castle County Police.

Officers, paramedics and EMS arrived at the Wilmington home and tried providing the boy with medical aid, officials said. He was pronounced dead at the scene.

He weighed 23 pounds at the time of his death, police told WPVI.

The Delaware Division of Forensic Science performed an autopsy and ruled the death a homicide through starvation, officials said.

On March 8, detectives obtained an arrest warrant for Ferguson after police and the Delaware Attorney General’s Office reviewed the case, officers said.

Ferguson was arrested at a home in New Castle on March 11, officials said.

She was booked into the Delores J. Baylor Women’s Correctional Institution on a murder by abuse or neglect charge, officials said.

The investigation remains ongoing and police are asking anyone with information to call 302-395-2745, officials said.

New Castle County is about a 30-mile drive northwest of Dover.

This story was originally published March 13, 2024 at 2:46 PM with the headline "Mom calls 911 about 4-year-old son, cops say. She’s accused of starving him to death."