CLEARFIELD – A Clearfield man accused of assaulting a one-year-old child who suffered two skull fractures last summer pleaded guilty during court on Monday.
Franklin James Minicucci, 31, was originally charged with two counts of aggravated assault and endangering the welfare of children, all felonies, as well as misdemeanor simple assault.
He pleaded guilty to felony endangering the welfare of a child for which he received a sentence of 15 months to three years in state prison from President Judge Fredric J. Ammerman.
The investigation began after the boy was taken to the hospital where physicians discovered the boy’s serious injuries. The child was flown to the Children’s Hospital in Pittsburgh for additional treatment.
Abigail Faye Bumbarger, 28, the child’s mother, was facing the same charges, but all, except the felony endangering the welfare charge, were withdrawn at the preliminary hearing stage. Her case is still pending.
In a second case, Minicucci pleaded guilty to felony possession with intent to deliver a controlled substance and was given a 10 months to three years state period of incarceration, which will run consecutive with the other sentence.
The criminal complaint for that offense indicates he sold methamphetamine to a confidential informant.
In a third case, he was given 12 months probation for misdemeanor intentional possession of a controlled substance, which will run concurrent to the initial sentence.
According to the affidavit of probable cause in the first case, on Aug. 30, 2023, the couple, Bumbarger and Miniccci, that brought him to the hospital for treatment had no explanation for the injuries and only took him to the hospital because they were concerned about swelling in his face.
Investigators spoke with the boy’s grandfather on Sept. 1, 2023. He told them his daughter said she did not know what happened and he felt she “was covering up for Miniccuci.” He last saw the child on Aug. 27, 2023.
In his interview with police on Sept. 1, 2023, Minicucci explained he had been dating Bumbarger for seven months, during which he was “like a father figure for the victim.” He confirmed only he and Bumbarger had contact with the victim after a party on Aug. 27, 2023.
He claimed he noticed the child’s ear was rolled forward and appeared to be black between 3 p.m. and 4 p.m. on Aug 30, 2023. They were at the hospital in DuBois at 4:30 p.m.
Minicucci reportedly said everyone was blaming him because he tested positive for methamphetamine. He admitted to snorting some meth after stopping at a gas station in Punxsutawney on the way home from Pittsburgh on Aug. 27, 2023, police said.
Bumbarger was questioned on Sept. 6, 2023, when she explained that the child had sustained five broken ribs in April 2023. His biological father was charged for the injury.
Court records indicate felony endangering the welfare of a child and conspiracy charges were withdrawn in that case.
She confirmed the victim’s father has not had contact with him since that assault.
She stated that her relationship with Minicucci began after that incident.
Bumbarger allowed police to search her phone. Police say they discovered conversations between her and Minicucci showing they were in a relationship since February of 2023 and indicated both were using methamphetamine.
The doctor treating the boy disclosed that she was concerned about the child returning to the same environment because he could suffer “further injury and possibly death.” She noted that there were multiple bruises on the child in various stages of healing.
In her report, she stated that the injuries were the result of physical child abuse.