BELFAST, Maine (AP) A husband and wife accused of using their fists, a belt and a mop handle in the fatal beating of a 10-year-old girl have pleaded not guilty in a Maine courtroom.

Sharon and Julio Carrillo, of Stockton Springs, entered the pleas at their arraignment Monday.

The state medical examiner’s office concluded Sharon Carrillo’s daughter, Marissa Kennedy, was a victim of battered child syndrome.

Investigators said the pair initially tried to stage the basement of their home in Stockton Springs to make it appear that she was the victim of an accidental fall. They later acknowledged taking turns beating the girl before her death in late February.

The state is investigating her death after reports emerged that child welfare agents failed to act after being alerted to suspected abuse.