Brother found boy’s decomposing body in blanket, now dad pleads guilty, officials say
A Wisconsin man was sentenced to more than 45 years in prison after pleading guilty to charges in connection with the death of his 12-year-old son.
Romuan Jovaes Moye, 45, pleaded guilty to 1st-degree reckless homicide, chronic neglect of a child and failure to report death of child, according to court records.
McClatchy News was unable to reach Moye’s attorney for comment.
On Oct. 7, Jay Moye, then 22, went to his father’s home and found his 12-year-old brother Jacarie Robinson dead inside, WITI previously reported.
According to a criminal complaint, a witness told officials that Romuan Moye had been “keeping (Jacarie) away from the family for the past few months.” He said on the “rare occasions” he did see Jacarie, he was “extremely skinny.”
Romuan Moye had two other kids who lived with him — ages 15 and 17 — but they were staying with their mothers for the two weeks leading up to Jacarie’s body being found, McClatchy News previously reported.
Court records said Jacarie’s body was “extremely malnourished and emaciated” and had moderate decomposing. His body weighed 54 pounds during an autopsy, officials said.
“When I read Jacarie’s autopsy, I could not believe it,” Jacarie’s mother said in court, according to WTMJ.
After Jacarie’s body was found, Romuan Moye was wanted by police for months, WDJT reported. He was found and arrested in February.
Romuan Moye appeared in court on Aug. 29. He was sentenced to the maximum term for each count and will serve 47.5 years in prison, followed by 20 years of supervised release.
This story was originally published September 1, 2024 at 1:40 PM with the headline "Brother found boy’s decomposing body in blanket, now dad pleads guilty, officials say."
