Couple arrested in 1-year-old's murder

GLENPOOL, Okla. - Glenpool police have arrested a man they say killed a 22-month-old baby because the child wasn't responding to toilet training. A woman was arrested for child neglect.

Neighbors are struggling to understand how something so tragic could happen on their block. A child's stroller now sits eerily in the driveway of a home in the 700 block of E. 147th Street in Glenpool. This is where the 22-month-old Adriana Hernandez was found dead Wednesday morning.

Her uncle, David Eugene Bridgeman and his fiancé, Paula Najar, had been caring for Adriana since mid-April. The couple was trying to potty train the toddler but told police on Tuesday night she was not cooperating. According to court documents, that's when Bridgeman lost his temper.

"According to what he told us he was throwing her around from bed to bed, the beds do have metal frames on them. Then he threw her in the floor and apparently when he threw her in the floor that's when she received some head injuries," says Chief Dennis Waller with Glenpool Police.

Najar allegedly spanked the girl as well, then the couple put Adriana to bed. They told police they checked on her throughout the night, but just before 6 a.m. Wednesday morning found her not breathing. They called 911 and paramedics attempted CPR, but it was too late.

Bridgeman was arrested for first degree murder and injury to a minor, both are felonies. He's being held without bond. Najar faces one count of child neglect. She's being held on a $50,000 bond.

"I don't believe it. I believe there's more to it than David's willing to tell," says Bridgeman's father David Lee Bridgeman.

Bridgeman says his son isn't capable of harming a child and believes the truth will come out. Even though his son was arrested for a horrible crime, he wants David to know he's there for him.

"I'm sorry, it's just such an awful crime. A life is a terrible thing to lose, especially when it's a baby," Bridgeman says.

There were three other children in the home at the time of the incident, one of which is the victim's brother. They've all been taken into protective custody.