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By Khaleda Rahman
National Correspondent
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- Thomas Mosley, 21, is charged with two counts of first-degree murder for the killing of Pashun Jeffery, 20, and their son Taylen Mosley.
- Police launched a massive search for the boy after Jeffery was found dead in her apartment in St. Petersburg, Florida.
- The boy was found dead in an alligator's mouth in Lake Maggiore on Friday.
- An affidavit alleges Mosley "did throw or place" his son into the lake.
A 2-year-old Florida boy who was found in the jaws of an alligator after his mother was slain had been thrown in a lake by his father, according to an arrest affidavit.
Thomas Mosley, 21, is charged with two counts of first-degree murder in the killing of 20-year-old Pashun Jeffery and their son Taylen Mosley.
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Taylen Mosley had been the subject of a frantic search after Jeffery was found stabbed to death in her apartment in St. Petersburg on March 30.
The boy's body was found in Lake Maggiore on Friday.
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According to an affidavit, Mosley "did throw or place" his son into the lake, inflicting "mortal wounds" that led to his death.
Jeffery's family had been at her apartment for the defendant's birthday party on March 29, the affidavit said.
They left around 5.15 p.m. and the only people who remained at the residence were Jeffery, Mosley and their son.
The affidavit said Mosley allegedly arrived at his mother's house at around 9 p.m. that night with "severe lacerations to both of his hands and arms consistent with injuries caused by slippage during a knife attack," according to an affidavit. He was admitted to a hospital.
The affidavit goes on to say that on March 30, Jeffery's family went to check on her and saw blood on the sidewalk near her apartment.
They called management who entered the apartment and found Jeffery dead with "apparent cuts and stabs in excess of 100 wounds," the affidavit said.
A bloody fingerprint on a cleaning bottle that "had been intentionally placed under a bed in the crime scene" and a "bloody shoe print" with a Gucci logo was found on the bathroom floor where Jeffery was found, the affidavit added.
Taylen Mosley was not found at the scene, prompting a massive search.
The St. Petersburg Police Department said officers searching for the toddler in the Lake Maggiore area were alerted to an alligator seen with something in its mouth.
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They fired shots at the reptile, which dropped the boy's body. The alligator was euthanized, the affidavit said.
The medical examiner will determine Taylen Mosley's cause of death, police said.
Jeffery's mother, Lakita Denson, and her great aunt Theo Brickhouse-Sails, released a letter on Saturday thanking the community and law enforcement.
"We especially send our gratitude to St. Petersburg police and all law enforcement working day and night in the search for Taylen and the concerned citizens who shared helpful information," they said. "We are heartbroken that we must begin putting them both to rest."
They also launched a GoFundMe page to collect donations to pay for funeral costs and support the family.
"Taylen was a sweet and happy toddler and loved his mom," they wrote on the page. "To see them together and their love for each other was a blessing. We will remember their love and will keep them in our hearts."
Mosley was booked in the Pinellas County Jail on Friday night, online records show.
His attorney, Sixth Judicial Circuit Public Defender Sara Mollo, has been contacted for comment via email.
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