The father of a young boy who was found dead inside a cooler in a Lynwood apartment just over a month ago pleaded not guilty Tuesday to murder, torture and child abuse charges.
Daniel Alberto Monzon, 25, is charged along with the boy’s mother, Destiny Luckie Harrison, 25, and the boy’s paternal grandmother, Ana Carcamo Zarceno, 45, who pleaded not guilty last week.
Harrison, Monzon and Zarceno are each charged with murder, torture and child abuse resulting in death, with an allegation of willful harm resulting in death. Monzon and Zarceno are also charged with being an accessory after the fact.
The three are due back in a Compton courtroom Jan. 20. A date is scheduled to be set then for a hearing to determine whether there is enough evidence to allow the case against them to proceed to trial.
If convicted as charged, they would face 32 years to life in state prison, according to the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office.
Los Angeles County sheriff’s deputies responded around 8:30 p.m. Oct. 28 to the apartment in the 3100 block of Euclid Avenue, west of Peach Street, to conduct a welfare check requested by an unidentified resident who went to the sheriff’s station, LASD Sgt. Nancy Veliz told City News Service.
Paramedics from the Los Angeles County Fire Department were called to the home and pronounced the boy — who authorities now believe to be 8 years old — dead at the scene. It was unclear how the child, identified by prosecutors only as Isaiah H. and originally believed to be 7 years old, died.
The criminal complaint alleged that the boy was tortured on or between April 1, 2024 and Oct. 24, and that he was abused and murdered on or between Oct. 23 and Oct. 24. The boy died early Oct. 24 as a result of his injuries, and was found days later “in a cooler filled with ice,” according to the District Attorney’s Office.
“The horrific abuse that Isaiah endured is made even worse by the fact that, as alleged, it was at the hands of the people who were meant to love and protect him,” District Attorney Nathan Hochman said in a statement. “Our office is committed to ensuring that those responsible are held fully accountable for their actions and that justice will be secured for Isaiah.”
Authorities detained the boy’s mother, father and grandmother at the scene, where three additional children were also found. Those children — since described as being 16 years old, 14 years old and nine months old — were taken into protective custody by the Los Angeles County Department of Children and Family Services.
Anyone with additional information about the case was asked to contact the sheriff’s Homicide Bureau at 323-890-5500. Callers who prefer to remain anonymous can call Crime Stoppers at 800-222-8477 or visit lacrimestoppers.org.