Mother surrenders after boyfriend allegedly nearly kills her 6-year-old autistic son

Following an alleged assault on her son by her boyfriend, a nonverbal 6-year-old with autism, a mother in Florida has turned herself into the authorities.

Cynthia Elaine Hernandez, aged 32, surrendered to police on Friday (January 23), two weeks after her son, Mason, was found in cardiac arrest at a residence in North Miami Beach, Florida, on Friday (January 9), as reported by NBC Miami. 

Officers located the child with no pulse and performed CPR until his pulse returned. Subsequently, the boy was rushed to a nearby hospital in critical condition, the outlet stated.

Although the child survived, his injuries were severe. He suffered from internal brain bleeding, a broken arm, facial and back bruises, head swelling, and injuries to the liver, kidney, and spleen, as reported by NBC Miami.

Hernandez’s boyfriend, Daniel Eduardo Romero, 34, faced arrest on January 11, two days later, for allegedly providing conflicting stories about the incidents leading to Mason's injuries, according to NBC Miami, referencing arrest records. 

His mother's statements were also conflicting, based on those records.

At one point, Romero — not Mason’s biological father, as explained by Hernandez to the authorities — blamed the injuries on bike-riding lessons but later revised his story when unable to present the bike, according to authorities quoted by NBC Miami. 

Hernandez initially backed this story but later informed authorities that Romero had directed her to claim they were cycling, related to the arrest report.

She also supposedly stated that Mason sustained a head injury before his hospitalisation, which Romero blamed on the child falling against a TV, according to NBC Miami. 

After being away, she returned to find her son had suffered additional injuries, which Romero claimed happened while Mason was running inside with socks on, as mentioned in the report.

The next day, when Mason's lips began to turn blue, she advised Romero to call 911, as reported by NBC Miami.

Later, Hernandez informed investigators that she believed Romero was responsible for her son's injuries, according to the outlet and the arrest report. 

She described Romero’s increasing frustration with Mason’s autism-related behaviour and his annoyance when their 5-month-old cried.

The couple, whose relationship has been intermittent since 2023, have two children together, NBC Miami reported.