What did Persia Nelson do? Disturbing Facebook posts explored as Schenectady mom accused of baby daughter Halo Branton’s murder

Persia Nelson, a 24-year-old mother of an 11-month-old baby girl was charged with murder. The 11-month old Halo Branton was found dead in a utility tunnel on the campus of the General Electric Company on March 10, 2024. Schenectady County District Attorney Robert Carney said on Tuesday, March 12, that Persia Nelson was initially charged with second-degree manslaughter on Monday.

However, the charge was upgraded after the autopsy results revealed the baby died of exposure and hypothermia after allegedly being thrown eight feet down a utility tunnel on the campus of the General Electric Company. Nelson is now charged with second-degree murder, depraved indifference to human life.

According to the Daily Gazette, GE security found Nelson trespassing on the property on Saturday night. When confronted she reportedly told him she didn’t know how she got there and that her child was missing. Security then called the police, who interviewed Nelson and began looking for the little girl, Halo Branton.

After hours of searching, police issued an Amber Alert early Sunday morning, which was abruptly called off after the child was located down the utility tunnel. The infant was rushed to Ellis Hospital, where she was pronounced dead at 1:24 p.m. on Sunday.

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Persia Nelson posted disturbing messages shortly after her daughter Halo Branton's disappearance

According to the New York Post, Persia Nelson shared some strange Facebook posts just hours after her daughter went missing. In these posts shared early Sunday morning, Nelson wrote on Facebook:

"I'm drunk asf don't play with me right now lmfaooo."

In response to one of the comments, she said:

"Nah I'm literally crazy don't play with it."

According to the Mirror, Nelson also quipped that she was supposed to name Halo "Crotch Goblin."

According to the New York Post, Nelson has been living in the Capital Region since November 2023. She was in the Albany County shelter before moving to The Electric City with her boyfriend Dante Gergory.

The outlet, citing a woman related to Halo’s father, reported he was fighting for custody of the baby.

“He’s grieving, my family’s grieving. She was beautiful, she was charming, she was very intelligent,” she said. “She looked just like her father.”

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Persia Nelson and Halo Branton were at a gathering near GE plant before breaking into the property

Authorities said Persia Nelson and her daughter had been at a family gathering near the GE plant with her boyfriend and his family on Saturday night before she somehow managed to enter the GE property with Halo. According to PEOPLE, Schenectady County District Attorney Robert M. Carney said at the briefing, that the victim was dropped to the bottom of the tunnel with standing water.

“The baby was dropped into this utility tunnel from the height of about eight feet to the bottom of the tunnel, where there was standing water. The baby did not drown. The baby was in the water, which came up to her chest and around her head but not to her face.”

Shortly after Halo Branton was declared dead, authorities reportedly located Nelson in a heated building on the General Electric property where she was arrested on Sunday.

According to PEOPLE, Persia Nelson pleaded not guilty to the initial manslaughter charge on Monday. She is being held on $500,000 cash and a $1 million bond.