Man charged in beating death last year of Iowa toddler

HAMPTON, Iowa (AP) — Police in north-central Iowa have arrested a man suspected of beating a nearly 2-year-old boy to death last year. The Hampton Police Department reports that Jhonny Junior Salvatore Suarez Rivera was arrested Sunday in the 2020 death of 23-month-old boy. Police say Rivera is charged with first-degree murder and child endangerment resulting in death. Investigators say police were called after the child was taken to a Franklin County hospital on Aug. 1, 2020, and pronounced dead about an hour later. An autopsy showed the boy had died of blunt force injuries. Police say an investigation showed the boy had been in Rivera’s care when he was fatally injured. Rivera is being held in the Franklin County Jail.