An Indiana father has been sentenced to 92 years in prison after admitting he drowned his 3-month-old son in a bucket of laundry detergent before brutally attacking the baby’s mother.
Eliasard Moneus, 29, was handed 62 years for the murder of his infant son, Jacob, and another 30 years for the attempted murder of his wife, Edlie. A judge ordered the sentences to be served consecutively.
Prosecutors said Moneus placed the baby face down inside a bucket filled with laundry detergent, closed the lid and left him there to die in August 2024.
“A young male infant believed to be Jacob was located deceased in a dark-colored liquid inside of the orange bucket once the lid was removed,” an affidavit said.
An autopsy determined Jacob died from asphyxia after being submerged in the detergent.
Tippecanoe County Deputy Prosecutor Elyse Madigan told the court that the child swallowed about 100 milliliters of detergent as he drowned.
“It doesn’t really get worse than this,” Madigan said. “A father put his 3-month-old son face down in a bucket of laundry detergent, sealed the lid, left his son to die, and then went to the next room and viciously attacked the baby’s mother.”
Prosecutors said Moneus committed the horrific crimes because he wanted to teach his wife and other women a “lesson” about allegedly disrespecting men.
“The defendant wanted to teach Edlie and women a lesson,” Madigan said. “You can’t disrespect a man.”
She said Moneus repeatedly claimed he did not care about the consequences or whether he spent the rest of his life behind bars.
“He could not live without teaching Edlie a lesson, and he didn’t care if he spent the rest of his life in prison, which is exactly where he belongs,” the prosecutor said.
The case began at around noon on Aug. 10, 2024, when Lafayette Police Department officers responded to a hospital following a reported domestic violence attack.
Moneus’ wife, who suffered a fractured skull, told investigators that her husband of nearly one year had attacked her with what she believed was a tire iron or wrench.
She said he then fled with their 3-month-old son.
Police searched the family’s home and discovered blood spatter and other evidence indicating that a violent assault had occurred. However, officers were initially unable to find Jacob.
Moneus was located and arrested the following day.
During the investigation, officers eventually discovered the infant’s body inside the orange detergent bucket.
Moneus, who speaks French Creole, expressed remorse through an interpreter for the suffering he caused.
Tippecanoe Superior Court Judge Steve Meyer showed little sympathy as he imposed the lengthy sentence.
“You killed your own child,” Meyer reportedly told him. “I can’t think of a worse crime.”
The judge described the case as one of the most disturbing murders he had ever encountered.
“This is one of the most grotesque murders I have ever had to see,” Meyer said. “The thought of putting a 3-month-old upside down into a bucket of laundry detergent is unimaginable.”
Moneus entered a guilty plea before receiving the 92-year sentence, which he will serve in an Indiana state correctional facility.
