Mother wanted her 18-month-old daughter to “pass peacefully in her sleep” so she fed her a bottle filled with sleeping pills, killing her, because a judge granted temporary custody to her father
Minnesota – In a deeply unsettling case out of Minnesota, a 23-year-old mother, identified as M. Yang, is now facing second-degree murder charges after she killed her 18-month-old daughter by lacing the child’s bottle with a significant amount of sleeping pills. Authorities say the act was carried out just hours after a judge granted temporary custody of the child to the girl’s father.
Yang was arrested and booked into county jail after being released from the hospital, where she was recovering from what police believe was a suicide attempt following the child’s death. Yang is being held on a $1.5 million bond and is scheduled to appear in court on February 10. The series of events began on the afternoon of January 9, 2026, when officers with the police department were dispatched to a home following a report of a baby not breathing. When they arrived, first responders discovered a baby girl unresponsive and Yang in medical distress. Both were rushed to a nearby hospital. Despite emergency efforts, the baby was pronounced dead. Yang survived.
The tragedy unfolded only hours after a family court judge granted temporary custody of the girl to her biological father. According to statements given by Yang’s parents, the court hearing had taken place earlier that day. When Yang returned home, they say she took the toddler upstairs to a bedroom. Hours passed. When Yang’s father attempted to check on them, he found the door locked. Forcing his way in, he found the child on the floor, her lips turning blue. He immediately called 911.
In a post-Miranda interview with investigators, Yang reportedly confessed to deliberately poisoning her daughter. She admitted that she had poured a large dose of sleep medication into the baby’s bottle, saying she wanted to “make the pain go away.” Her goal, she said, was for her daughter to “pass peacefully in her sleep.” Investigators believe the case was an intentional murder-suicide attempt. After feeding the bottle to her child, Yang allegedly consumed medication herself, intending to end her own life. The plan was thwarted when her father intervened and called for help. The case was submitted to the Attorney’s Office on January 13, and an arrest warrant was issued the same day. Once released from medical care, Yang was taken into custody and formally charged.
The girl’s father shared his heartbreak in a GoFundMe created to raise money for funeral expenses. In a powerful statement, he wrote: “My baby girl was not just taken away from me, She was murdered… I had finally won custody of my beautiful baby on Friday, January 9th at 11:30 AM and by 4 PM her life was gone.” He expressed sorrow and frustration at the legal system, saying, “I did everything right… the justice system failed you.”
The case remains active, with police continuing to collect evidence and conduct interviews. The community is left grappling with the unimaginable reality of a young child’s life taken in such a deliberate and devastating way—by the very person meant to protect her. As the legal process moves forward, Yang now faces the weight of a murder charge and the irreversible act of silencing her daughter forever in what she believed was a peaceful way to end pain—leaving behind only grief, outrage, and a shattered family.
