Man arrested in death of 1-year-old Las Vegas boy
Las Vegas police charged a man Tuesday in the death of a 1-year-old boy.
Bransen Locks, 36, who was in custody on unrelated arrest warrants, was charged with murder in the death of Bently Olsen after police said he caused injuries to the boy consistent with shaken baby syndrome.
Bently was rushed to University Medical Center from Locks’ home in the 2600 block of Tenaya Way, near Smoke Ranch Road, in the early morning hours of May 19 with what medical personnel described as severe head injuries, including bleeding in the brain and “a noticeable midline shift of the brain.”
Bently died on May 26 from his injuries.
According to police reports, Locks was looking after his girlfriend’s two children, Bently and his 5-year-old sister, when the injuries occurred. Locks told medical responders that the child had a seizure, but based on Bently’s symptoms, police said they immediately knew that Bently had suffered a serious head injury.
A firefighter who was in the ambulance said Locks was inconsistent in how he answered their questions on the way to hospital. By the time police arrived at the hospital, Locks was nowhere to be found.
Medical responders noted a sizable red abrasion on the top of Bently’s head which appeared to be “very recent,” according to reports.
During the investigation, Bently’s sister revealed to police that Locks injured her brother’s head on what she called “brave pokies” from the tree house in Locks’ backyard, the reports said.
Officers arrested Locks on outstanding warrants after they found him hiding in a crawl space underneath his house around 5 a.m. on May 19, the report said.
Locks’ mother, who initially called 911 the morning of the incident, told police that “it’s been a rough year with him and his drug problem,” mentioning that she suspected him of using “crystal meth,” the report said.
As of Tuesday, the Clark County coroner’s office had not released an official cause of death.
Locks was charged with murder and two counts of child abuse, including causing substantial mental harm to Bently’s sister. His arraignment hearing is set for July 25.
Contact reporter Colton Lochhead at clochhead@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-4638. Follow him on Twitter @clochhead44.
