The Lynn man accused of fatally assaulting a baby boy is scheduled to return to court Thursday for a pretrial hearing.
Anthony Gideika, 33, was arraigned earlier this month on charges of beating 3-month-old Chase Gideika, who died July 8 of massive head injuries consistent with being violently shaken and slammed. Gideika pleaded not guilty and was ordered held on $100,000 bail.
Police said Gideika told investigators he had recently learned that Chase and his twin brother were not his biological children, a discovery that “set him off” and led him to start abusing prescription drugs.
He has been charged with bringing suboxone, a medication used to treat opiate dependence, in prison, officials said.
In 2012, the state Department of Children & Families took the twins’ 2-year-old brother from the home that their mother, Jennifer Nelson, shared with Gideika. DCF had a report that the tot was found wandering the streets alone.
The twins were born with drugs in their systems.
Police said Chase Gideika sustained a skull fracture, internal bleeding, and leg fractures consistent with shaking or jerking. His brother, Anthony, was apparently unharmed and was taken into protective custody.
In an obituary posted on the website of The Daily Item of Lynn, Chase was remembered as a “very happy baby.”
“He was just starting to learn Tummy Time, and he began his baby coos,” it read.
Peter Schworm can be reached at schworm@globe.com. Follow him on Twitter @globepete.