Bartow man accused of ‘viciously’ beating 4-month-old daughter to death: ‘He showed zero remorse’

BARTOW, Fla. - A 4-month-old Polk County girl is dead and investigators say her father is responsible for taking her life. 

According to the Polk County Sheriff’s Office, 22-year-old Jacob Kubai viciously murdered his daughter Willow, who he called "Strawberry".

Investigators with the Bartow Police Department say they were called to Bartow Regional Hospital on February 22, because a baby had arrived in cardiac arrest. Police say she had no brain activity and suspicious physical injuries.   

After emergency room personnel stabilized the little girl, police say she was flown to St. Joseph’s Hospital in Tampa.

"It was obvious that the child had multiple injuries," Police Chief Andy Ray shared.

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Ray added that after the baby was taken to Tampa, officers asked for help from the Polk County Sheriff’s Office.

According to Polk County Sheriff Grady Judd, the baby suffered a skull fracture and multiple impact bruises to the forehead, and had 10 fractured ribs. She also had a hemorrhage in her spine and multiple layers of brain bleed.

"Still the baby fought for life and lived for two more days before she died," Judd said.

Detectives said they counted a minimum of ten strikes to the forehead.

"The baby was beaten in the forehead by ten different strikes," Judd stated. "The baby had 10 broken ribs that they said would have been from a squeezing of the child. In addition to that, the significant skull fracture to the back of the head, the medical examiner said that would have been from striking a hard object. The baby was literally beaten to death. The only person at home at the time was Jacob."

In the arrest affidavit, the autopsy conclusion states, "Based on the injuries noted, the skull fracture would have been caused by the caregiver at that time. The cause of death was determined to be blunt force trauma of the head. The manner of death was ruled as a homicide."

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When questioned, Kubai told detectives that he and "Strawberry" had dropped his wife off at work at the Texas Cattle Company in Lakeland shortly before 5 p.m. on February 22. Then he took the baby home and he played video games before taking "Strawberry" to Walmart to pick up ingredients for dinner.

Judd says investigators pulled video from Walmart and Kubai did not have a baby with him at the store.

Judd says he told detectives he fed the baby at 7:50 p.m. and checked on her every ten minutes.

"We felt that was a little strange," Judd shared.

Kubai, according to Judd, said the baby was unresponsive around 8:10 p.m. Kubai told detectives he did CPR on the girl. Investigators say he did about five compressions before taking her to the hospital in Bartow.

According to Judd, the baby’s mother said the baby was not bruised when she went to work and was not complaining or restless.

When Kubai was arrested, Judd said he told detectives he didn’t know what they were talking about. However, according to Judd, Kubai eventually told detectives that none of it was real. His wife wasn’t real, and the baby wasn’t real.

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Judd says Kubai does not have a criminal history, nor does he have a history of mental illness.

"Occasionally you will see people, based upon the extent of this injury. You wonder why God allows them to breathe air. Here’s one that I wonder why God allows him to breathe air," Judd stated.

Kubai has been charged with aggravated manslaughter of a child, aggravated child abuse and two counts of knowingly abusing a child without bodily harm. 

The case is still under investigation. 

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