Dad ‘killed son, 5, with baseball bat’ before making disturbing phone call

A dad called police and allegedly told them that he beat his five-year-old son to death in their living room.

Officers in Parma, Ohio, the US, said they were called to the home of 31-year-old Matthew Ponomarenko after he called them claiming to have killed his son after hearing voices on March 25.

Ponomarenko allegedly told the 911 dispatcher he beat his son with a baseball bat and his body was on the living room floor.

According to officers, Ponomarenko was taken into custody at the scene.

The Cuyahoga County Medical Examiner has identified the victim as Jax Ponomarenko.

Johnathan Cherni, the uncle of the 5-year-old, says he was an amazing child. He was autistic and learned to use a tablet to communicate, NBC15 reports.

Cherni also said the boy’s dad was recently released from a behavioural health centre and was off his medication, but earlier in the day, he appeared fine.

“My mom dropped him off today. He was fine," Cherni said.

"He was vibrant, completely content, and all of a sudden, we get hit with all this.”

The family's neighbours were devastated after hearing a child was the victim.

Amanda Bohach and her 11-year-old son left stuffed animals and floral tributes by a tree in front of the home to pay their respects.

She said: “I’m super sad, and you know, mad all at the same time.

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"I just realised it just sucks being this close to home and across from a school that’s right over there. The timing is also really bad – kids were getting off the school bus.”

Detectives, crime scene investigators, and the Medical Examiner’s Office were said to be on the scene for hours, gathering evidence and taking photographs of the crime scene.

Ponomarenko is scheduled to appear in Parma Municipal Court on March 29 charged with aggravated murder.

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