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Infant’s death shocks neighbors

Staff photo by Nick Daggy Asuncion "Suzie" Avila-Villa, 25, is charged in the murder of her infant son, whose body was found in a trash bin behind this apartment building in Hamilton.

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By Richard Wilson and Lauren Pack, Staff Writers 1:14 AM Wednesday, August 26, 2009

HAMILTON — Residents in the 1300 block of Shuler Avenue could hardly believe what they heard Tuesday, Aug. 25, about a neighbor charged with killing her infant.

Some remember seeing the mother, Asuncion “Suzie” Avila-Villa, 25, bring the newborn home from the hospital; others recall holding the healthy infant weeks before his death.

Hamilton police have charged Avila-Villa with murder, endangering children, abuse of a corpse and tampering with evidence.

Police said investigators discovered the body of the infant early Tuesday morning, Aug. 25, inside a plastic bag in a trash can behind Avila-Villa’s apartment building.

Butler County Prosecutor Robin Piper said the case “boggles the mind.”

“A baby that so many people without children would want to love and care for. How could (someone) beat to death an infant and discard it in the trash? ... You can’t even get your head around it,” Piper said.

Avila-Villa had moved into the upstairs apartment around November 2008 and at one time had five children at the residence, according to Mark Riley, who lives downstairs.

Neighbor Stephanie Boggs, a mother of four, said she only knew Villa for about one month, but had many conversations with her about their children and had held the baby.

“He was a cute little baby. Very adorable,” Boggs said. “I’m still in disbelief that she would do something like that.”

Avila-Villa is being held in the Butler County Jail.

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