Father charged with murder over death of three-month-old boy

Police have charged a father with murder over the death of his three-month-old boy near Brisbane.

Officers began investigating on October 1 after the baby was taken to an Ipswich hospital with significant internal injuries.

The boy was later transferred to Queensland Children’s Hospital, where he received medical treatment, including periods on life support. He died from his injuries on Tuesday afternoon.

Overnight, 28-year-old Uneeb Ullah was arrested at an Ipswich property by detectives from the Ipswich child protection investigation unit.

The man was charged with one count of murder – domestic violence against a child.

Ipswich Detective Inspector Mick Manago said Ullah was alone with his son when he was allegedly injured, and was the one to present him to hospital on October 1.

He would not be drawn on any explanation given by Ullah for his son’s condition, but said hospital staff notified police due to the seriousness of the baby’s injuries.

“As with any investigation of this nature, the investigation doesn’t finish at the time of arrest,” Manago said.

“There’s still a lot of inquiries to continue to conduct … [to] establish exactly what happened to that young boy.”

Manago described the boy’s mother as “extremely upset” and said both parents, who are not originally from Australia, have limited support in this country.

“This is a terribly tragic event involving a very vulnerable young member of the community,” he said.

“[The baby’s mother is] struggling, but we’re offering her all the support that we can through this very difficult time.”

Ullah had not previously been in contact with police for any serious offences, only minor traffic matters, Manago said.

The father did not appear when the matter was mentioned at Brisbane Magistrates Court on Wednesday morning.

There was no application for bail and the case was adjourned until October 26.

An investigation centre at the Ripley police complex has been established.

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