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A three-month-old baby has been found drowned in a sealed bucket in Indiana, with his father reportedly considered a person of interest in his death.

A silver alert to search for Jacob Moneus was launched by Lafayette Police on August 10, but called off just the following day after they discovered his body in a bucket full of laundry detergent, according to reports from Journal & Courier.

The bucket he was found in was reportedly beside the trash can in his mother’s residence in southeast Lafayette.

In the press release asking the public for assistance in locating the baby, police explained the “seriousness of the situation,” saying they believed Jacob was in “extreme danger” and may require medical assistance.

Jacob’s father, 28-year-old Eliasard Moneus, is currently held without bond for charges in a domestic violence case, with Fox59 reporting that court records show he is accused of assaulting his wife, also Jacob’s mother, with some kind of metal tool, allegedly leaving her with a fractured skull.

The investigation was launched after police were called to the hospital where Moneus’ wife had managed to drive herself to, with prosecutors claiming he admitted to attacking his wife and that he hoped she would die from her injuries.

He was arrested in the northeast part of the city.

His wife told police that Moneus took their son before he started beating her and drove off after the assault, meaning she did not know where either of them were.

She also said that in the five days leading up to the horrific ordeal, the couple, who have been married for 11 months, were not speaking as Moneus had become upset with his wife on August 5 for currently unknown reasons.

He has now signed a paper acknowledging a no-contact order barring him from reaching out to his wife.

While searching her flat, police found blood and “other evidence” indicating some kind of altercation had occurred, but did not initially find the three-month-old when first going through the residence, instead discovering him early on Sunday morning.

The Independent has reached out to the Lafayette Police Department for comment.

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