Massachusetts man pleads not guilty in death of Columbus 2-year-old

COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) -- A Massachusetts man pleaded not guilty on Friday in the death of a Columbus 2-year-old.

Dioblis Williams, 25, of Worchester, Massachusetts, was indicted this week on charges of murder and endangering children. On March 25, 2020, Jamir Jones, the son of Williams’ girlfriend at the time, died after suffering blunt force trauma.

Williams is originally from Columbus and his mother still lives in the area.

The judge accepted the not guilty plea and set a $1 million surety bond and a $20,000 recognizance bond. Williams may not have contact with any alleged victims, family, or witnesses. He also must stay at least 500 feet away from any of the addresses listed in the indictment and may not be unsupervised with minors.

Williams was reportedly babysitting and called police, who found Jones unresponsive at an apartment on Holt Avenue in North Central Columbus. Jones was taken to Nationwide Children’s Hospital, where he was pronounced dead.

Police said that he told officers that while he was babysitting, the boy “pooped” in his pull up and that he placed the child in the bathtub unsupervised. Several minutes later, the boy was found unconscious.

A criminal complaint noted that during an autopsy it was determined that Jones did not drown, but that he sustained injuries to his abdomen and multiple internal injuries, as well as bruising around his head and neck.

A warrant for Williams’ arrest was issued last month and he was arrested one week later in Framingham, Massachusetts.