A Kansas man has been convicted of murdering his girlfriend’s 2-year-old son after claiming the little boy had simply choked on a meatball while eating dinner.
But investigators soon uncovered a horrifying truth. The toddler’s body was covered in bruises, and an autopsy revealed devastating internal injuries that had nothing to do with choking.
Now, seven years after little Jacob Aviles was found dead inside a Wichita home, a jury has found 38-year-old Bernardo Gonzalez-Mejia guilty of first-degree murder, child abuse and aggravated child endangerment.
The verdict, delivered Wednesday, October 7, also marks a significant development in a case that has already sent Jacob’s own mother to prison for life.
According to the Sedgwick County District Attorney’s Office, jurors deliberated for approximately three hours following a seven-day trial before District Judge Eric Williams.
The decision came after prosecutors detailed the disturbing circumstances surrounding Jacob’s death and the repeated warning signs that the child had allegedly been abused long before his final moments.
The tragedy unfolded September 29, 2019, at a home in the 1100 block of West Munnell Avenue in Wichita, Kansas.
Jacob’s mother, Stephanie Aviles, had left her toddler in the care of Gonzalez-Mejia, who was her boyfriend at the time.
Aviles told investigators that she had gone out with her daughter to meet a relative, leaving Jacob sitting at the kitchen table eating.
Everything initially appeared normal.
But while she was away, Gonzalez-Mejia called with frightening news.
He claimed Jacob had been eating a meatball when he suddenly began choking and lost consciousness.
According to investigators, Gonzalez-Mejia told Aviles that the toddler was turning yellow and had become unresponsive.
He claimed he had removed food from the child’s mouth but could not revive him.
Terrified, Aviles called 911 and rushed back to the house.
By the time she arrived, police officers, firefighters and paramedics were already desperately attempting to save her son’s life.
Emergency crews had responded to the home around 11 a.m. after receiving a report that a child was not breathing.
Despite their efforts, Jacob was pronounced dead at the scene.
What initially appeared to be a tragic choking accident quickly became a homicide investigation.
Officers noticed extensive bruising across the toddler’s body, raising immediate questions about what had actually happened while he was alone with Gonzalez-Mejia.
An autopsy revealed injuries far more serious than anyone would expect from a choking incident.
According to local news reports, Jacob had suffered multiple contusions to his head, arms, legs, back and abdomen.
The medical examiner also discovered internal bleeding and several lacerations to his mesentery, the tissue that helps hold the intestines in place inside the abdomen.
Those injuries suggested the toddler had suffered significant blunt force trauma.
The medical examiner ultimately ruled Jacob’s death a homicide.
Investigators then began questioning Gonzalez-Mejia about what happened inside the home.
At first, he denied physically assaulting the child.
But during subsequent questioning, he acknowledged that he had struck Jacob with a belt over his diaper the previous evening because the boy was refusing to eat.
The admission raised further concerns about how the toddler had been treated during the time Gonzalez-Mejia was responsible for him.
As detectives continued investigating, they learned that Jacob had allegedly suffered repeated injuries during previous occasions when he was left alone with his mother’s boyfriend.
Aviles admitted to police that she had noticed unexplained bruises and welts on her son after Gonzalez-Mejia watched him.
Some injuries had been serious enough to require hospital treatment on two separate occasions.
But despite those frightening incidents, Aviles continued leaving Jacob in his care.
She told investigators that Gonzalez-Mejia routinely offered explanations for the injuries.
“Bernardo would explain it away,” she reportedly told police.
Prosecutors argued that the mother had been aware of the abuse but failed to take the steps necessary to protect her young son.
That failure would eventually result in murder charges against Aviles herself.
On October 2, 2019, just three days after Jacob’s death, Wichita police announced the arrests of both Gonzalez-Mejia and Aviles.
Gonzalez-Mejia, then 31, was arrested on suspicion of felony murder and child abuse.
Aviles, who was 24 at the time, was arrested on suspicion of felony murder and aggravated child endangerment.
The arrests followed the completion of Jacob’s autopsy and a review of the evidence gathered by investigators.
The criminal case would stretch on for years as prosecutors worked to hold both adults accountable.
In July 2025, a Sedgwick County jury convicted Aviles of first-degree murder and related child abuse and endangerment offenses.
During her trial, prosecutors argued that she had repeatedly ignored signs that her boyfriend was hurting her son.
Jurors ultimately agreed that her conduct supported criminal responsibility for Jacob’s death.
In September 2025, Aviles was sentenced to life in prison with no possibility of parole for 25 years.
The judge also imposed an additional 41-month prison sentence to be served consecutively.
Her conviction meant that the little boy’s own mother would spend decades behind bars because of her role in the circumstances that led to his death.
But the case against Gonzalez-Mejia remained unresolved.
That changed this week when prosecutors presented the evidence against him to another Sedgwick County jury.
After hearing seven days of testimony and reviewing the disturbing medical evidence, jurors returned guilty verdicts on all three charges.
The decision means both adults responsible for Jacob’s care have now been convicted in connection with his murder.
Gonzalez-Mejia remains in custody while awaiting sentencing.
He is scheduled to return to court December 14, 2026, before Judge Williams, where he faces the possibility of life in prison.
The Sedgwick County District Attorney’s Office credited Chief Assistant District Attorney Alice Osburn and Assistant District Attorney Atticus Disney with prosecuting the case.
Officials also praised Wichita Police Detective Addie Perkins for her work investigating the toddler’s death over the past seven years.
The conviction brings another measure of accountability in a case that exposed years of alleged abuse, missed warning signs and the devastating consequences of leaving a vulnerable child in an unsafe environment.
Jacob was just 2 years old when his life ended.
He should have been spending his days playing with toys, learning new words and enjoying the ordinary experiences of childhood.
Instead, investigators found that he had suffered repeated injuries before the fatal attack.
The case also serves as a painful reminder that child abuse is not always a single isolated incident.
Unexplained bruises, repeated injuries and changing explanations for how a child was hurt can be important warning signs that require immediate attention.
For Jacob, those warning signs came too late.
Nearly seven years after emergency responders desperately attempted to save him, both his mother and the man who was supposed to keep him safe have been found guilty of murder.
And when Gonzalez-Mejia returns to court in December, a judge will determine how much of the rest of his life he will spend behind bars.
