Joshua Gurto is charged with raping and murdering a one-year-old girl
An Ohio man has been charged with raping and killing his girlfriend's 13-month-old daughter.
Joshua Gurto, 37, could face the death penalty if convicted of beating to death Sereniti Jazzlynn-Sky Blankenship-Sutley.
The girl was found unconscious by her 22-year-old mother on 7 October in a bedroom at their flat in Conneaut, 70 miles north-east of Cleveland. She was later pronounced dead in hospital.
A coroner said the toddler had died of blunt force trauma to her head and body.
Ashtabula County prosecutor Nicholas Iarocci said Mr Gurto faced charges of murder, aggravated murder, rape, assault with a dangerous weapon, and domestic violence.
Sereniti Jazzlyn-Sky Blankenship-Sutley
He subsequently fled, sparking a manhunt.
He was spotted in a Pittsburgh convenience store the day before his arrest.
Detectives said he had been camping in woodland as he sought to evade police and was found with a backpack containing maps of Pennsylvania and New Jersey. He also had a knife and a tent.
Mr Gurto is being held at Ashtabula County Jail.
Sereniti's mother is not facing any charges.
Comment: One example of the type of person that causes so much damage to human societies. The damage caused by people like Gurto however can be contained and limited. When people like Gurto are in positions of power however (and there are many), the damage to society at large is much worse because all of society can be 'infected' by political and social policies implemented by pathological individuals.