Illinois Aunt Who Pushed 3-Year-Old Nephew Off Pier and Then Watched Him Drown, Learns Her Fate

A 38-year-old Illinois woman will spend decades in prison for killing her 3-year-old nephew by taking him to Chicago’s Navy Pier and shoving him into Lake Michigan as she and several other witnesses watched him drown.

Victoria Moreno was sentenced to serve 40 years in astate correctional facility in connection with the 2022 slaying of Josiah Bell Brown, court records show. Moreno was sentenced after she pleaded guilty to first-degree murder charges.

Moreno was initially charged with attempted first-degree murder and aggravated battery of a child younger than 13 resulting in permanent disability after Josiah was pulled from the water in critical condition, but the charges were upgraded after the toddler’s death.

Investigators found surveillance video that showed Moreno pushing the child into Lake Michigan near Navy Pier on Sept. 19, 2022. She then stood by and watched as the child struggled to remain afloat in the water.

Witnesses at the scene and emergency personnel eventually pulled Josiah from the lake and he was rushed to Lurie Children’s Hospital in extremely critical condition. He went into cardiac arrest and died less than a week later, on Sept. 25, 2022.

On the day of the incident, Josiah was left in the care of his grandmother. When the grandmother went upstairs to change, Moreno took the boy and left in his mother’s vehicle.

Moreno later told police she had taken Josiah to Navy Pier to “go on the rides.” When officers first questioned her after the boy went into the water, however, she claimed she was only a witness and did not know him. She eventually acknowledged that Josiah was her nephew.

Bystanders at the lakefront also witnessed Moreno’s apparent lack of response as Josiah was drowning in the water. “I will never forget seeing his face as he slipped under the surface,” one witness told authorities, adding, “It was absolutely horrible.”

Questions about Moreno’s fitness to stand trial subsequently delayed her case. She was found fit to stand trial in February 2024, but later received additional psychological evaluations. Earlier this month, she was again found fit to stand trial while taking medication, as reported by local ABC affiliate WLS. Her attorneys have said Moreno has been diagnosed with depression, anxiety and bipolar disorder.