Apr. 4—MANKATO — A Mankato man has been sentenced to 180 months in prison Tuesday, April 4, 2023, in Blue Earth County District Court for the murder of his 2-month-old daughter.

Kristopher Dale Arlando Henderson, 41, pleaded guilty to felony unintentional second-degree murder as part of a plea deal that dismissed several other felonies, including manslaughter and malicious punishment of a child.

He entered an Alford plea, meaning that while he does not admit guilt, he admits that a jury would convict him based on the evidence.

District Judge Gregory J. Anderson credited Henderson with 526 days for time served. Henderson has been in custody on a $1 million dollar bail since his October 2021 arrest.

A criminal complaint was first filed in the case on Oct. 25, 2021, charging Henderson with a single count of first-degree assault, but an amended criminal complaint was filed on Nov. 19, 2021, charging him with second-degree murder.

The child died on the morning of Nov. 3, 2021, at a Rochester hospital. A doctor told law enforcement that the child suffered from brain hemorrhaging, rib fractures, fractures to the femurs and a torn frenulum.

According to court documents:

Mankato police were alerted to a possible child abuse case on Sept. 24, 2021. The day before, a 2-month-old girl was brought into a Mankato hospital by her parents before being transferred to a Rochester hospital.

The girl's mother told police that the baby was fine when she gave her a bottle before leaving for work the morning of Sept. 23, 2021. The woman said she received a message from Henderson about 4:40 p.m. that day that said he caught the 19-pound cat laying on the baby. When she returned home, she noticed the baby did not look the same and brought her to the hospital less than an hour after returning home from work.

When initially interviewed by police, Henderson told police he did not know how the baby received her injuries and that he did not take any aggression out on her, the criminal complaint reads. On Oct. 1, Henderson spoke with investigators again and admitted that he cradled the baby face down in his arms and struck her back "more forcefully than usual for what he estimated was five minutes while trying to calm her down."