ZUNI
On Monday afternoon, investigators with the Isle of Wight County Sheriff’s Office charged Jaye Hadley, 32, of Zuni, with the death of her five-year-old son.

On Tuesday, investigators also charged Hadley’s boyfriend, Justin Cox, 33, with second-degree murder.

According to Lt. Tommy Potter, spokesman for the Sheriff’s Office, the child, whose name is now being released as Alexander Robertson, died on Jan. 16 at approximately 9:58 p.m. at the Children’s Hospital of the King’s Daughters from injuries sustained at home. Robertson had been on life support for the past two weeks since Isle of Wight emergency medical personnel found him unresponsive in his mother’s house in the 7000 block of Yellow Hammer Road on Jan. 8.

Hadley already faces charges of felony child abuse and aggravated malicious wounding stemming from this incident. When questioned by the Sheriff’s Office, Hadley reportedly admitted to pushing Robertson down, causing him to hit his head on the floor. Then, he reportedly attempted to stand up, staggered and fell against a wall.

Investigators also say that Hadley admitted to letting her son go while checking on him, which resulted in his falling backward, hitting his head on the wall again, this time putting a hole in the sheet rock.

On Jan. 12, investigators charged Cox, who last lived with Hadley and her son, with child endangerment. Of the additional murder charge added on Tuesday, Potter said that the Sheriff’s Office had not initially thought that Cox inflicted physical harm to the child, but now believe that his actions played a direct role in the death of Robertson.

Both Hadley and Cox were already in custody at the Western Tidewater Regional Jail with no bond when investigators announced the additional murder charges. Cox was brought to the Sheriff’s Office on Tuesday to be served the warrant, and was arraigned in Isle of Wight Juvenile and Domestic Relations Court.