RIVERSIDE (CNS) - Because he's in the jail infirmary, arraignment was
postponed today (Tuesday) for a Corona man accused of killing his 8-year-old son and
trying to conceal the evidence using acid and other products.
Bryce Daniel McIntosh, 32, was initially arrested about two weeks ago
and charged with child abuse in connection with the disappearance of Noah
McIntosh. An amended complaint was filed against the defendant last week after
Corona police detectives procured additional evidence pointing to McIntosh's
alleged perpetration of a homicide.
The defendant was slated to be arraigned this afternoon (Tuesday) at the
Riverside Hall of Justice on the murder count, as well as a special
circumstance allegation of torture. However, deputies informed Riverside County
Superior Court Judge O.G. Magno that medical staff at the Robert Presley
Detention Center infirmary had not cleared McIntosh to go to court.
The type of treatment McIntosh is receiving, or whether he's under
observation for suicide risks, was not disclosed.
Magno rescheduled the hearing for Wednesday morning, but there's no
guarantee that McIntosh willd make an appearance then.
An arrest warrant affidavit filed by Corona police Detective Mario
Hernandez last week laid out a timeline suggesting that Noah, whose 9th
birthday would have been this past Sunday, went missing on March 2, when he was
last seen by his mother, Jillian Marie Godrey, who is charged with child
endangerment and is being held in lieu of $500,000 bail at the Riverside jail.
Godfrey, 36, waited until March 12 to report Noah missing, Hernandez said.
According to the detective, the woman had documented instances of
alleged abuse, including ``Bryce admitting to putting Noah in hot water, Noah
being placed in cold water for approximately 2 1/2 hours, Noah being put in a
tub of cold water for over six hours, and ... Noah in Bryce's bathroom with his
feet tied up.''
The last time she saw her son, Godfrey told investigators that
McIntosh had taken Noah into the bathroom of his apartment at 4637 Temescal
Canyon Road, and the boy asked his father ``why he was hurting him,'' according
to the affidavit.
Investigators spoke with Bryce's 11-year-old sister, Chloe, and she
acknowledged assisting her father on one occasion, holding ``Noah's legs down''
in a bathtub full of cold water, Hernandez said.
McIntosh refused to speak with detectives. A search warrant was
obtained and served at the defendant's apartment on March 13, resulting in his
arrest for alleged child abuse. He was booked in lieu of a $1 million bond.
Investigators seized McIntosh's computers and mobile phone. They also
found handcuffs, zip ties, yellow towels ``with stains'' and purple latex
gloves, according to the affidavit.
After accessing the data on the defendant's phone, detectives
discovered that McIntosh had sought information via the internet on ``normal
heart rate for 8 year old,'' ``how exactly sodium hydroxide works,'' ``sodium
hydroxide to water,'' ``what exactly is sulfuric acid,'' ``what does sulfuric
acid do to aluminum'' and ``what kind of plastic can stand (muriatic) acid,''
Hernandez wrote.
He said detectives also confirmed McIntosh had purchased the following
items from a Corona Home Depot on March 4: long-cuffed gloves, 24-inch bolt
cutters, four gallons of muriatic acid and a 128-ounce bottle of drain opener.
Later that same day, the defendant had also purchased the following from a
Lowe's Home Improvement Center in Corona: 32-gallon trash can and a 32-ounce
bottle of sulfuric acid drain opener, according to court papers.
Data extracted from McIntosh's mobile phone showed that he made a trip
on March 4 to remote Wilson Valley Road in Aguanga -- more than 50 miles
east of his residence -- as well as to Squaw Mountain Road in Temescal Valley
the next day, according to the affidavit.
Corona police officers and FBI agents visited the locations, and at
the first one, they found a trash can, a paper with ``Noah M.'' written on it,
purple latex gloves, a plastic bag with blood residue, parts from a kitchen
blender, empty bottles of drain cleaner, blankets and yellow towels, Hernandez
said.
During a news briefing Wednesday, police Chief George Johnstone said
Noah's loss ``tears at the heart of every person who has touched this case.''
Johnstone would not disclose a possible motive.
He said McIntosh's black BMW 330i is a key element in the alleged
killing. The license plate is California 5MKE807. Anyone who may have seen the
vehicle during the period in question was asked to contact detectives at (951)
279-3659.
CNS-04-02-2019 15:00
