A Texas mother is facing murder charges after allegedly dropping her 17-month-old daughter from the third floor of a hotel in Galveston. Local law enforcement responded to a distress call on Wednesday morning near the Beachfront Palms Hotel, where they discovered the toddler, Hannah Yonko, critically injured. The child had sustained injuries from a fall and had three puncture wounds on her back, according to the arrest affidavit.
Emergency medical personnel rushed Hannah to a nearby trauma center. Despite their best efforts, the medical team was unable to save the toddler, who was pronounced dead shortly after arrival.
In the meantime, police had released a description of a woman seen with Hannah. The woman was later identified as the child’s mother, 30-year-old Channel Jasmine Yonko. An officer located Yonko approximately half a mile from the hotel. She was visibly upset and sought the officer’s assistance, mentioning that her daughter might be “sick,” according to the police report.
Yonko was taken to the police station for questioning. She declined to provide her name to detectives and requested legal representation. Yonko’s sister, who had also been staying at the Beachfront Palms Hotel with Yonko and Hannah, arrived at the station and cooperated with the police.
The sister informed the police that on the morning of the incident, they were checking out of the hotel. She had left Yonko and Hannah to meet her fiance at a nearby hotel. Later, Yonko joined her at the second hotel with a stroller, which the sister assumed contained Hannah. However, she did not verify this. When the sister mentioned returning to the Beachfront Palms Hotel to collect her belongings, Yonko repeatedly discouraged her from doing so.
Hotel staff confirmed that the women and the child had been staying in room 217. Investigators found a trash bag outside the hotel containing a key card for the same room, a knife, toys, snacks, and diapers. Surveillance footage from the hotel also captured the tragic fall of the toddler. Earlier footage showed Yonko pushing Hannah, who was alive at the time, in her stroller.
Yonko was arrested and charged with capital murder. She is currently being held at the Galveston County Jail without bond. Galveston Police Chief Doug Balli expressed his sorrow over the incident, stating, “This is a horrible crime. All children deserve to feel safe when around loved ones, especially with their own mother.”