PHOTO: ARKANSAS STATE POLICE/FACEBOOK
An Arkansas man pleaded guilty this week to the 2022 murder of his girlfriend’s young son, whose body was buried under the floorboards of their family home, authorities said.
On Monday, July 15, Nathan Bridges, 34, pleaded guilty to first-degree murder and first-degree battery in the death of 5-year-old Blu Rolland, according to a statement from Arkansas State Police. Bridges was subsequently sentenced to 60 years in prison.
Blu’s body was found on December 16, 2022, under the floorboards of the Moro, Arkansas, home, located about 85 miles east of Little Rock. That day would have been the boy’s 6th birthday, police said.
Arkansas State Police initially reported that Blu died from injuries likely sustained in the home about three months before his body was discovered. However, an arrest affidavit revealed by PEOPLE stated that the boy had drowned in a toilet.
According to the affidavit, Blu’s mother, Ashley Rolland, initially told deputies that Blu was not at home when they arrived to perform a civil standby. Eventually, she confessed to her father that Blu was dead inside the home and his remains were under the newly-nailed floorboards. Rolland allegedly claimed the boy had collapsed and died.
When deputies returned to the home hoping to find Blu alive, they found a child’s flip-flops and a blanket underneath the floorboards, along with the smell of decay after sifting through the top layer of soil.
In an interview with detectives, Rolland alleged that Blu died in September after he bit Bridges’ finger. As punishment, Bridges stuck the little boy’s head repeatedly into the toilet until he drowned, according to the affidavit.
Both Rolland and Bridges were arrested and charged in connection with Blu’s death. While Bridges has pleaded guilty, Rolland, 30, is still awaiting trial in Lee County. She faces multiple charges, including capital murder, permitting child abuse, abuse of a corpse, tampering with physical evidence, endangering the welfare of a minor, and battery.
It remains unclear if Rolland has entered a plea, and PEOPLE could not immediately identify an attorney who could speak on her behalf. In the wake of Blu’s death, a GoFundMe campaign was created to help support Blu’s grandmother with funeral and other expenses.
If you suspect child abuse, call the Childhelp National Child Abuse Hotline at 1-800-4-A-Child or 1-800-422-4453, or go to www.childhelp.org. All calls are toll-free and confidential. The hotline is available 24/7 in more than 170 languages.
