Body of 5-year-old boy found in dumpster, Wisconsin cops say. One man pleads guilty
A Wisconsin man pleaded guilty in connection to the October beating death of 5-year-old Prince McCree, whose body was found in a dumpster, court records show.
David Pietura, 27, pleaded guilty in Milwaukee court to first-degree intentional homicide as a party to a crime on June 3, the first day of the trial, according to court records. Conviction of this charge carries a mandatory life sentence.
McClatchy News reached out to Pietura’s attorney for comment June 4 but did not immediately hear back.
Prince’s body was found in a Milwaukee dumpster on Oct. 25, less than a day after he was reported missing, McClatchy News previously reported.
According to a report from the Milwaukee County Medical Examiner’s Office, Prince had blunt force injuries “from head to toe,” court records show.
He was beaten with a golf club, a barbell, and a concrete birdbath pedestal, according to court records.
Pietura told police he was an “active participant” in Prince’s killing, according to the criminal complaints shared by The New York Times.
Pietura and a 15-year-old, both of whom lived in the house with Prince, were arrested in connection to his death Oct. 26, according to a news release from the Milwaukee Police Department.
The 15-year-old faces multiple felony charges, including first-degree intentional homicide, physical abuse of a child resulting in death and hiding a corpse, according to court records.
He is due in juvenile court Aug. 30, the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reported. McClatchy News is not naming the teen because he is a juvenile.
Pietura’s sentencing hearing is scheduled for July 26, court records show.
Prince’s death prompts new law
In April, Wisconsin Gov. Tony Evers signed the “Prince Act,” which aims to address holes in the state’s AMBER alert system.
Circumstances around Prince’s disappearance “were considered to not have met the threshold statutorily to issue an AMBER Alert,” the governor’s office said in an April 9 news release announcing the law.
The Prince Act expands Silver Alerts to those under the age of 18 who are missing and need help getting home due to physical or mental conditions, if they are under 10 years old, or if they do not qualify for other alerts.
“The current alert system failed him and failed our family, and I hope that with this new law, more families will get the attention and resources they need to bring their kids home safely,” Prince’s mother said in the release.
This story was originally published June 5, 2024 at 9:34 AM with the headline "Body of 5-year-old boy found in dumpster, Wisconsin cops say. One man pleads guilty."
