A Tampa woman has been charged with murder after tying her son to the passenger seat for 15 hours and witnessing his death, according to the Tampa Bay Times.

Rebecca Gussage-Johnston faced new first-degree murder charges June 15 when she was involved in aggravated child abuse. She was originally charged with aggravated child abuse that resulted in severe physical harm and child neglect in May. Hillsboro County Sheriff’s Office announced.. The suspect was detained at Valkenburg Road Prison after being arrested on June 16.

Tampa woman faces murder charges after death of 2-year-old son https://t.co/eCsJUCn2Fk

— Jim (@DAYUNITEDSTATES) June 20, 2023

The medical examiner’s office concluded: Death of 2-year-old victim The report said it was a murder caused by severe neglect.

The boy was reportedly found by his aunt on May 19, unresponsive in a cot under blankets, according to a search warrant. She was asked by her father to check on the child in her mobile RV around 8pm, but found the child dead. A representative was summoned to the scene, the newspaper said.

Gussage Johnston admitted to police that his son had been punished for screaming and “acting” by tying him to the seat of a table. The boy stopped responding around 2 p.m., according to the newspaper. (Related: Police prosecute nursery school owner after discovering corpse of child picked up by mother)

According to the affidavit, the 24-year-old suspect last saw his son sleeping upright in the passenger seat in the middle of the night on May 19. Late in the morning, she found the sheet overturned and her son lying on his side.

Gussage-Johnston also said she saw her son have a seizure, shake uncontrollably and die in her arms, according to an affidavit.

The newspaper said the mother had a working phone during the incident but did not call the police.

Investigators found multiple wounds on the boy’s body. He had a head injury, bruises on his right thigh, and bruises on his extremities. The newspaper said he was covered in vomit and feces.

The victim’s father told police that he bought a mobile RV last year. His mother, two-year-old boy and other siblings lived in the car. His father did not live in a mobile RV and did not see his son for six or seven months before the murder, he claimed.

The mother “locks the kids in a mobile RV all the time,” the father said.

Sheriff Chad Chronister: “The Hillsborough Sheriff’s Department has a relentless passion for seeking justice for innocent children harmed by criminals.” Said. “It is truly heartbreaking to witness such senseless and preventable acts of violence against small innocent children. We were able to face it.”