He stressed that Ahren's parents didn’t leave the child with just anyone.
"They've known him (Lake) for a while," DeHart said. "This guy's wife is coworkers with baby Ahren's mom. So, they knew him and he was watching his stepkids at home and he was just going to watch baby Ahren for one day for like five hours. Who would ever think that it would turn into this monstrous situation where this man would take this baby's life."
Lake served in the U.S. Army with Ahren’s father, Brandon DeHart, and Lake’s girlfriend was a coworker of Ahren’s mother, Araya DeHart, at the Hospitals of Providence Memorial Campus, Lawrence DeHart said.
Brandon DeHart is a U.S. Army specialist stationed at Fort Bliss.
Fort Bliss officials would only say that Lake was discharged from the U.S. Army while serving at the post last year.
Lake is accused of performing wrestling moves on Ahren that resulted in the baby suffering a skull fracture and several other internal injuries, according to court documents.
Days later, his parents had to make the heartbreaking choice to remove him from life support.
"He was their first kid," Lawrence DeHart said. "This young 20-year-old, newly married couple just starting their careers and lives together having to sit in the NICU and knowing that the neurosurgeons have said there's pretty much no way he's going to get brain function back. He's breathing because of machines."
He continued: "His blood's pumping through his body because of machines. And then at roughly 2:30 p.m. Friday (April 16) afternoon, they had to make the horrible decision to pull him from all of those machines and allow him to pass away. Just imagine having to hold him as he died and take his last breath in your arms. It's devastating."
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GoFundMe account was created by Araya DeHart's boss to help the family with the financial cost. The account has received more than $15,700 through more than 200 donors.
“It's so much more than just the financial help,” Lawrence DeHart said. “It's healing. We all hop on it and see who donated. When we see that friends or family did, it means something so much more valuable. It's like these little brief moments where you can escape this cruel reality and see that people care and that they're helping. They're leaving little messages and it's just so much more.”
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