Luis Raymond Ortega Denied having anything to do with stepson's injuries

The mother told Las Vegas police she believed her 4-year-old son had only vomited.

But doctors who examined Brandon Tomoria-Lamug's lifeless body said his internal organs were exploded, cuts and bruises covered his head, and the lobes of his brain were covered with blood clots.

Those injuries are usually seen when someone is hit by a car going 60 mph, one doctor told police.

Brandon's stepfather, 23-year-old Luis Raymond Ortega, was arrested in connection with the boy's death. Murder by child abuse is the charge, police said. Ortega is being held at the Clark County Detention Center without bond.

According to Ortega's arrest report, Bernadeth Tomoria-Lamug had left their residence at the Silvarado Village apartments, 3750 Arville Street, near Flamingo Road, and gone to the store for an hour Dec. 12. She came home to find her son, who was in the stepfather's care, complaining of stomach pain.

A few minutes, later Brandon stopped breathing.

The boy had been acting normally all day, Tomoria-Lamug told police. He had eaten leftover steak and was watching TV when his mother went grocery shopping.

Ortega was suffering from the flu and had stayed home from work that day to rest, according to the arrest report.

In an interview with investigators, Ortega said he had felt sick and went to the bathroom to vomit. At the time, Brandon was using the toilet. "(Ortega) told Brandon 'You gotta get up.' (Ortega) stated that he then vomited, some getting on the floor," according to the arrest report.

Ortega told police Brandon then said he didn't feel good and also got sick.

When Bernadeth Tomoria-Lamug came home and learned her son had vomited, she went to check on him. She found him moaning, and he said "'My tummy hurts,'" according to the arrest report.

She left for a moment to get him some juice. When she returned, he was not breathing. She called 911, and Ortega began CPR, according to the arrest report.

Brandon was taken to University Medical Center, where he died.

"(Ortega) could provide no reasonable explanation as to how Brandon suffered his injuries" and denied having anything to do with them, according to the arrest report.

Police were soon called, and over the next few days investigators discovered through a number of doctors' examinations, including the Clark County coroner's office, that the injuries were not accidental. According to the arrest report, Dr. Troy Reyna said the force required to cause Brandon's injuries would be "'a good swift kick or a punch from an adult or a teenager."

Ortega was arrested Friday.

Lt. Brian Evans of the Metropolitan Police Department's special victims unit said there were no previous reports of abuse concerning the child.