Man faces murder charge in 4-month-old’s head trauma death, report says

A 4-month-old Las Vegas boy who died of head trauma had been shaken by his father multiple times and suffered brain injuries consistent with those suffered in motor vehicle crashes or in contact sports, according to a Las Vegas police report.

The child, Levi Rangel, died on Sept. 16, and his father, Mykeal Rangel, faces a murder charge. Brooke Lehman, 20, Rangel’s girlfriend and the boy’s mother, also faces charges in the case.

According to a Metropolitan Police Department arrest report Mykeal Rangel, 20, told detectives that the boy had gastroesophageal reflux disease. In the early morning of Sept. 10, he said, he woke up when Lehman went to work. He said he then observed the boy struggling to eat.

Rangel said he called Lehman, but while he was on the phone Levi took “one labored breath” and made a noise before his head dropped back.

Rangel said he began running from the house on the 700 block of Leavorite Avenue toward a nearby fire station with the boy in his arms before flagging down a van to take them the rest of the way, all the while performing CPR. Firefighters helped assist at the station, then took the boy to Summerlin Hospital, where he died six days later.

A doctor at the hospital told police that Levi had been “shaken and beaten to death,” and said his brain injuries were consistent with major vehicle accidents or athletes who play high-contact sports.

During an interview, Rangel initially told detectives that he’d squeezed Levi “too hard,” on two occasions in the past. He also said he hadn’t slept for two days, suffered from insomnia, bipolar disorder and depression, the report said.

Detectives then told Rangel that Levi was suffering from multiple brain bleeds and rib fractures. Rangel told detectives he may have caused the fractures by squeezing him too hard.

In a second interview, Rangel changed his story, saying shaken Levi about a month earlier, but had not done so since, the report said.

He later amended that account as well, saying there were multiple times where he “wanted to hurt” Levi, including on Sept. 10. He then said he’d squeezed Levi seven or eight times and shaken him two or three times, the report said.

Finally, he stated that either he or Lehman had killed Levi.

The boy’s death was caused by abusive head trauma, according to the Clark County coroner’s office, which ruled his death a homicide.

Rangel was charged with murder, child abuse or neglect and allowing child abuse or neglect. Lehman was charged with two counts of allowing child abuse or neglect.

Rangel was being held without bail at the Clark County Detention Center, while Lehman was released on $25,000 bail.

A preliminary hearing was set for Oct. 26.

Contact Jonah Dylan at jdylan@reviewjournal.com. Follow @TheJonahDylan on Twitter.