PEORIA, Ill. (AP) — A central Illinois man has admitted to fatally beating his girlfriend’s 19-month-old son last December.
Twenty-year-old Deon Wells of Peoria pleaded guilty Thursday to first-degree murder in the death of Koffi Harris. He initially faced up to 100 years in prison, but a 40-year cap will be placed on his sentence in an agreement with prosecutors.
The (Peoria) Journal Star reports that the boy suffered multiple injuries, including head trauma, while in Wells’ care in December 2014. He was brought unconscious to a hospital, where he was pronounced brain dead the following day and taken off of life support.
Prosecutors said Wells hit the child and slammed his head into a hardwood floor.
Sentencing is scheduled for Dec. 4.
