Brendan Creato Murder – The father of 3-year-old Brendan Creato, David Creato, Jr., has been arrested in connection with his son’s death. He also faces a charge of harming the welfare of a child in the second degree. Creato will be imprisoned for ten years. Before he is eligible for parole, he must serve at least 8 years and 6 months of his sentence.
Brendan Creato, a 3-year-old boy from Haddon Township, New Jersey, was tragically murdered in Episode 5 of Investigation Discovery’s ‘Caught in the Net.’ When the authorities discovered him dead in a wooded area, they had no idea that someone very close to him was engaged in his horrific death. Here’s a closer look at this tragic case and the events that lead up to it.
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Brendan Creato’s Cause of Death
Brendan Creato was born on June 1, 2012, to Samantha Denoto and David Creato Jr., AKA DJ, high school sweethearts. He was characterised by loved ones as a happy, active little boy who was the apple of everyone’s attention. Samantha claims she split up with DJ after he allegedly betrayed her, and they had joint custody of their baby. Brendan used to visit his father frequently, and on the night of October 12, 2015, he was staying the night at his apartment.
The next morning, around 6:30 a.m., an increasingly concerned DJ contacted his mother, Lisa, and the cops to report Brendan missing from the residence. DJ went on to say that the youngster had most likely opened the front door of the apartment on the second level and strolled away on his own. Brendan’s body was located by the K-9 team in Cooper River Park, not far from DJ’s apartment, after a three-hour search.
The tiny youngster was discovered face down in a brook, partially soaked in his pyjamas and socks. Despite the fact that sexual assault and drugging were ruled out, at least three autopsy and a number of crime scene investigations were conducted. Brendan died from oxygen deprivation for at least 30 to 90 seconds, according to autopsy findings. Brendan died of “homicidal violence,” according to the state medical examiner, who was unable to determine the specific cause or time of death.
Who Killed Brendan Creato and Why?
DJ Creato, 22, was dating Julia Stensky, whom he met on a dating service in June 2015, at the time of the event. She was a 17-year-old Pace University student in New York City at the time. Julia allegedly stated in a now-deleted Tumblr post shortly after Brendan’s murder that she might be facing charges in a homicide probe.
She went on to say that her boyfriend was also involved, and that he couldn’t leave the state where he was living. This led the cops to DJ, and they examined his phone as he was being questioned. After a comprehensive search and retrieval of erased data, it was discovered that DJ and Julia had exchanged over 9,000 texts over the previous four months, some of which reflected Julia’s dislike for Brendan.
Julia was not fond of children, according to investigators, and had often offered DJ an ultimatum to choose between her and Brendan. The texts found from his phone also suggested that DJ was insecure about a college classmate with whom Julia spent a lot of time.
Furthermore, Julia continually pushed DJ to either give up Brendan’s custody or break up with her, causing DJ to experience severe feelings of envy and paranoia. Meanwhile, despite the muddy environment in which the toddler was discovered, the forensic analysis revealed that the toddler’s socks were relatively clean.
This ruled out Brendan’s assertion that he had travelled there alone, as well as his family’s claim that the kid was terrified of the dark. A detailed examination of DJ’s flat disproved his claims of forced entry and the manner in which he claimed his kid might have abandoned it.
DJ was last seen online on Julia’s Snapchat account around 1:37 a.m. on October 13, 2015, according to the digital experts reviewing his phone. This contrasted with his police statement, in which he stated that he went to bed at 10 p.m. on October 12 and only awoke at 6 a.m. the next morning to discover his kid missing.
According to accounts, DJ took a photo of the place where Brendan was found on his phone a few days before the murder. It was DJ’s favourite hangout, which he used to refer to as “spiritual,” and Julia subsequently testified that she had gone there with her lover several times.
Julia and DJ also clashed multiple times over Brendan’s presence during her weekend visit the weekend before the youngster died, following which she left for college the next morning. The authorities decided that DJ killed his son in a fit of insecurity over his relationship, based on DJ’s allegations being inconsistent with the evidence acquired and a careful examination of the chain of events. He was charged with first-degree homicide and second-degree child endangerment on January 11, 2016.
What happened to David Creato Jr. and Where Is He Now?
Prosecutors were able to determine David Creato Jr.’s motive based on the evidence acquired after his arraignment on murder charges. The trial ultimately began in April 2017 after multiple delays, primarily due to a lack of clarity on the forensic findings. The jury was unable to reach a conclusion despite questioning multiple witnesses, including Samantha and Julia, and re-examining forensic evidence, and the court declared a mistrial.
DJ pleaded guilty to aggravated manslaughter in Brendan’s death on August 23, 2017. He admitted that he “recklessly caused his son’s death by depriving Brendan of oxygen under circumstances demonstrating profound disrespect to the value of human life.” DJ allegedly choked his son to death with a pillow before bringing him to Cooper River Park and burying him there, according to the episode.
David Creato Jr. was sentenced to ten years in prison on September 29, 2017. He is currently jailed in Leesburg, New Jersey’s Bayside State Prison. After serving the necessary 8 years and 6 months of his sentence, he will be eligible for parole on July 9, 2024, and maybe released on the same date.
