Charge: Woman drowned baby in Bloomington hotel tub, put him in dumpster; body still missing

A 20-year-old woman took her crying baby boy into her Bloomington hotel bathroom, drowned him and hid the still-missing body in a dumpster outside, according to a criminal complaint filed Friday.

Esperanza R. Harding, who has no permanent address, was charged in Hennepin County District Court with second-degree intentional murder in connection with the death of 7-month-old Mateo Harding on Feb. 28 at the Quality Inn in the 800 block of E. American Boulevard.

The body has yet to be found by police as of late Friday afternoon, according to Bloomington Deputy Police Chief Kimberly Clauson.

Harding’s 18-year-old boyfriend, Edwin C. Trudeau, of Minnetonka, was charged with aiding and abetting Harding after she allegedly killed the boy.

Harding remains jailed in lieu of $1.5 million bail.

Harding and Trudeau each appeared in court Friday, and they have follow-up separate hearings scheduled for April 3. Messages were left with attorneys for both of them seeking a response to the allegations.

According to the charges:

Police were sent to Children’s Minnesota Hospital in Minneapolis on Wednesday regarding a missing child. Harding told them her baby son died of natural causes in the hospital, however there was no record of the child having been there.

Eventually, Harding admitted to Minneapolis police that she drowned her son in her hotel room bathtub, wrapped up the body, put it in a backpack and threw it in a dumpster.

She later told Bloomington police that Trudeau did not like her son and wanted her to put him up for adoption as a way to “prove that he was her top priority,” the charges read. Harding went on to explain that she was mad that the boy was crying and making it difficult for her to enjoy her bath.

Harding texted Trudeau that “I’m about to do something bad, please answer me. He no going to be here much longer. ... If u took the time to fill a bath that I cant use he can use it, Im sorry.” Trudeau responded, “Don’t be.”

She then texted to Trudeau that she was attempting to resuscitate the boy, and he replied, “Just stop trying.” A text two minutes later to Trudeau said the boy was dead.

Harding said it was Trudeau’s idea to throw her son in the dumpster and not to tell anyone.

“If you go down, I go down, no matter what,” the charges quoted him as telling her. “It is always going to be us, Bonnie and Clyde.”

Harding also shared with police that she took a photo of her son face-down in the full tub. Police recovered the photo from her phone.