Mom waited 3 days to bring girl to hospital after boyfriend beat her, and girl died, cops say

CAMDEN — A city man beat a 4-year-old girl to death, and her mother waited three days to get her medical attention, police said.

The Camden County Prosecutor's Office said 20-year-old Najuquan Ross told his girlfriend Lucy Gunter he had beaten the girl because she did not want to eat dinner. Gunter, according to police, had gotten home from work late on the night of July 15 when she found her daughter with cuts on her face and a missing tooth.

On July 18, the girl was rushed to Cooper University hospital after being found unresponsive in her bed, according to the prosecutor's office.

At the hospital, law enforcement and medical personnel reported finding bruises across her body, the prosecutor's office said.

Ross was charged with one count of first-degree murder in connection to the child's death and is being held at the Camden County Correctional Facility pending a first court date next week.

Gunter was charged with second-degree endangering the welfare of a child.

Last year, a Manahawkin man was charged with first-degree murder and sexual assault in the death of an almost-2-year-old Gloucester City girl. In that case, authorities say, the man raped the girl and caused injuries that lead to her death, and her mother repeatedly passed up opportunities to get the child care.

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Contact reporter Adam Hochron at 609-359-5326 or Adam.Hochron@townsquaremedia.com