The father of an infant girl found dead in a baby bathing tub in a Connecticut motel room in August has been charged with murder.

Dale Kirkland, 31, was initially charged with risk of injury to a minor and cruelty to persons after the baby was found by motel staff who entered the room to clean it on August 21, as CrimeOnline reported.

The infant was taken to Yale New Haven Hospital but did not survive.

An arrest warrant for Kirkland said that he was seen on surveillance video entering the motel room just after 7 p.m. on April 20 then leaving without her at about 8:30 a.m. the next day, WVIT reported.

Another motel guest told investigators they’d seen a “disheveled” Kirkland with the baby about a week earlier and that the baby was dirty and wearing a dirty diaper. Kirkland asked the guest for cigarettes and drugs, the warrant says.

Kirkland appeared in court on Tuesday for a pre-trial hearing, now facing charges murder and murder with special circumstances.

He’s being held on a $1 million bond.

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[Featured image: Dale Kirkland/Milford Police Department]