Utah Father Charged After Infant Found Dead in Drug-Infested Basement

Authorities in Murray, Utah, arrested 32-year-old Neal English Colby on first-degree child abuse homicide and related child abuse charges after his nearly 7-month-old daughter, Celia Aurora Colby, died in early 2025. Officers arrived to find the infant’s mother attempting CPR in an unfinished basement filled with drug paraphernalia, urine and a reddish fluid, and the baby died while being transported to the hospital. The mother, who lives with Colby despite being separated, said she left the children with him at 2:30 a.m. after they fell ill, but detectives discovered Colby had left the home around 3:20 a.m. to visit a local drug hangout, leaving the child unattended for 43 minutes.

Evidence included drug bottles, a dark blanket with red fluid, and signs of human and animal waste. The Utah State Medical Examiner’s Office reported facial abrasions and nasal injuries consistent with pinching, and could not definitively determine the cause of death, though asphyxia remained a possibility. Colby was booked into Salt Lake County Jail and is being held without bail pending trial.