Charges: Father causes 60 fractures, other injuries to 3-month-old twin sons

A father has been charged with causing serious injuries to his 3-month-old twin sons.

Dylan Raymond Strain, 19, faces two counts of first-degree assault and two counts of malicious punishment of a child.

According to a criminal complaint filed in Ramsey County Court, St. Paul police received a report from CPS about the physical abuse of 3-month-old twin boys on Jan. 27.

One of the twins was seen at Children’s Hospital on Jan. 31 for seizures and very low oxygen saturation levels. An evaluation of the infant found:

• Blood collecting between the skull and brain on both sides of the brain
• Multiple rib fractures in various stages of healing
• Hemorrhaging on the spine with concern for bridging vein activity
• Bruising and several fractures to his arms and legs
• A total of 46 fractures were found on the infant.

“There was no accidental explanation for these injuries,” the criminal complaint states. Due to the number of fractures, the infant is “at high risk for developmental delays.”

The baby is at significant risk of death, and his brain injuries will likely result in permanent disability, including vision loss, court documents state.

An evaluation of the other twin found:

• A healing cut under his tongue
• Bruising on his forearms
• Bruising on his abdomen
• An acute collarbone fracture
• A metaphyseal fracture-a fracture near the growth plate of the bone
• Hemorrhages to the eyes, consistent with abuse
• A total of 14 fractures were found on the infant.

This infant is at risk of developmental delays due to his injuries. The injuries to his eyes create a serious risk of impaired sight, court documents state.

Investigators found that the twins were born prematurely on Oct. 2 and live in St. Paul with their parents, grandmother, and other family members. Strain was identified as the father of the twins.

According to court documents, when investigators interviewed the twins’ grandmother, she told them, “My grandbabies are in the hospital because some man don’t know how to control himself,” adding that the man was Strain.

The grandmother detailed occasions in which she would hear hysterical crying coming from the twins’ room — Strain would be inside, and one of the babies would have a cut on his lip. Stain would claim to have put the bottle or nook in the baby’s mouth too hard.

The grandmother said she had heard Strain screaming at the babies and that she found a “punch mark” in the wall of their room, court documents state. At one point, she found Strain holding a baby wipe to one of the infant’s mouth with a pile of bloody baby wipes on the floor. Strain reportedly said he didn’t know what happened and that he’s a “bad dad” and “can’t handle this.” He then handed the baby to the grandmother and stormed off.

When investigators interviewed Strain, he said he was the likely cause of the injuries to the twins and that he was “a bit lackluster with [his] patience” with them. He added that the infants’ mother wasn’t the one hurting them.

According to court documents, Strain told investigators, “This is a confession of guilt is what it is. It’s not a who did it.'”

The infants’ mother hold police that whenever something happened to the twins, it was on Strain’s watch. She later tried to take responsibility for some of the injuries, but medical professionals said it was doubtful that the injuries were caused by the actions she described.

In text messages, Strain and the child’s mother discussed the abuse and Strain’s anger issues.

Strain was charged via warrant and does not appear on the Ramsey County Jail Roster.