Father Admits to Throwing Baby Off Arrigoni Bridge: Middletown Police

Tony Moreno, 21, of 155 Schuyler Ave., Middletown, was charged with murder and murder with special circumstances after allegedly throwing his infant son into the Connecticut River, before jumping himself.

Moreno, hospitalized since he jumped from the Arrigoni Bridge on Sunday, July 5, is being held on a $2,000,000 bond. He was turned over to Department of Corrections, as he was arraigned at the hospital.

The body of seven-month-old son Aaden Moreno was recovered on Tuesday, July 7.

Moreno was also arrested on a second warrant for an incident that occurred on June 25. He was charged with two counts of Criminal Violation of a Restraining Order with a cash bond of $100,000. During a July 8 press conference, Middletown Police said Moreno allegedly contacted the mother and the two counts of violation are one for the mother and one for the child.

Lt. Heather Desmond of the Middletown Police Department provided the following account in a press release sent to media outlets:

Shortly before midnight on Sunday July 5, 2015, Central Communications received a 9-1-1 call that Tony Moreno was believed to be on the Arrigoni Bridge with his son, Aaden Moreno.

Tony Moreno made statements that he was going to jump off the bridge. Middletown Police officers arrived on scene, and they observed Moreno on the southern sidewalk of the bridge approximately 100 feet west of the midpoint of the bridge.

Within moments of officer’s arrival, Moreno jumped over the railing before officers could reach him. Moreno was not holding Aaden at the time he was observed jumping over the railing, however an empty stroller was located in the immediate vicinity.

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• UPDATED: Search for 7-Month-Old Aaden Moreno Will Cease at Nightfall; Resume Wednesday
• Mother of Aaden Moreno Denied Restraining Order Against Father: Court Records
• Baby Now Presumed Dead After Father Jumps Off Arrigoni Bridge [UPDATED]

Moreno was pulled from the water by the Middletown Fire Department Marine Unit, he was unresponsive and was transported to Hartford Hospital via Life Star.

An immediate rescue effort was initiated by the Middletown Fire Department, with the assistance from the South Fire District, Portland Fire and Middletown Police Dive Team. Due to the fact that there were no witnesses to confirm that the child was also in the water, a Silver Alert for Aaden was also issued in addition to the rescue efforts on the river.

When Moreno regained consciousness at Hartford Hospital he was cooperative with Middletown Detectives and confirmed that he threw Aaden over the railing prior to the officer’s arrival on the bridge. After receiving that information the Silver Alert was cancelled, and the search was reclassified as a recovery operation with multiple agencies assisting in locating Aaden Moreno.

Yesterday at approximately 6:30 p.m. Aaden Moreno’s body was located in the Connecticut River 8 tenths of a mile north of the East Haddam Bridge by a person in a canoe.

The clothing found on the body was a match to what Aaden was last seen wearing. Aaden’s family positively identified the body as that of Aaden Moreno.

A warrant for the arrest of Tony Moreno was signed this morning and served while Moreno was still a patient at Hartford Hospital.

We would like to request that you respect the privacy of Aaden Moreno’s family during this time of sorrow.

The Middletown Police Department would again like to thank all the agencies that assisted in locating Aaden Moreno. As you know many, many hours were spent scouring the Connecticut River. The agencies that assisted in the rescue/recovery operations are as follows:

• Capital Region Dive Team which includes Glastonbury PD, East Hartford PD, Middletown PD, Rocky Hill PD, South Windsor PD, and West Hartford PD
• Connecticut State Police
• Cromwell Fire
• Department of Homeland Security
• DEEP
• Middletown Emergency Management
• Middletown Fire
• Portland Fire
• South District Fire
• U.S. Coast Guard
• Butch Hendricks, from Lifeguard Systems, an expert in water recovery operations was also sent by the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children
• Hypack Inc also volunteered and provided equipment to aid in the search