The man wanted for murdering a 2-year-old boy in Putnam County has been captured. According to a press release, on Thursday (12/14/2023), the Putnam County Sheriff’s Office received information that 22-year-old Ashton Cole Sensing was at a Dollar General on West Broad Street in Cookeville. Authorities found him inside the store and he was transported to the Putnam County Jail where he is being held without bond. Sensing has been charged with First-Degree Murder of a child and Aggravated Child Abuse. He has a court date of January 12, 2024.
In an earlier press release, the Putnam County Sheriff’s Office said Sensing was babysitting the 2-year-old boy on December 2 and “admitted to Detective Sergeant Haworth about getting upset with the child on numerous occasions throughout the day which led to him throwing the child into a wall and hitting the child making him become unresponsive.” Three days later on December 5, 2023, the toddler died from his injuries at Vanderbilt Medical Children’s Hospital.