Oklahoma man arrested for murder, sexual abuse of 1-year-old girl

Reuters
Cody Johnson is pictured in this undated handout photo obtained by Reuters December 7, 2015. REUTERS/Tulsa County Inmate Information Center/Handout via Reuters

By Lenzy Krehbiel-Burton

TULSA, Okla. (Reuters) - An Oklahoma man has been taken into custody on a murder charge on suspicion that he beat and sexually abused the 1-year-old daughter of his girlfriend, police said on Monday.

Cody Johnson, 30, and his girlfriend brought an unresponsive Sawyer Jefferson to a Tulsa hospital on Saturday, saying that the girl had tripped over her pajamas and fallen on a toy.

Doctors found that the girl had multiple bruises and was bleeding from her vagina and rectum, Johnson's arrest report said. No lawyer for him was listed on the document.

The girl was placed on life support and later died at the hospital.

Johnson was arrested on Sunday on charges of first-degree murder of a minor, child abuse and sexual abuse of a minor.

As of Monday morning, Johnson was in the Tulsa County Jail. Bond has been set at $100,000 for the two abuse complaints with no bond given for the murder complaint.

(Reporting by Lenzy Krehbiel-Burton; Writing by Jon Herskovitz; Editing by Frances Kerry)