A Missouri mother has been charged in the death of her 1-month-old child after she allegedly put the infant in an oven.
Court documents say Mariah Thomas told family members that she accidentally put the child in the oven instead of her crib, KSHB reported.
Thomas, who lives at the home with her parents, has been charged with endangering the welfare of a child leading to death.
“We appreciate all first responders who worked this scene and the prosecutors who went to the scene in order to issue these charges,” Jackson County Prosecutor Jean Peters Baker said in a written statement. “We acknowledge the gruesome nature of this tragedy and our hearts are weighted by the loss of this precious life. We trust the criminal justice system to respond appropriately to these awful circumstances.”
Kansas City Police responded to the home just before 1:30 Friday afternoon, according to the Kansas City Star. Officers found the baby in a car seat near the front door with apparent burn injuries. The Kansas City Fire Department declared the little girl dead at the scene, an affidavit said.
The baby’s grandfather told police that Thomas called him at about 1 p.m. on Friday and said that “something was wrong with the baby and that he needed to return home immediately,” according to KSHB. When he arrived, he said he smelled smoke and found the baby dead in her crib.
According to the affidavit, he said that Thomas told him she thought she put the child in her crib but “accidentally put her in the oven.”
The child’s grandmother told police she also received a call from Thomas at about the same time and that Thomas yelled “hysterically” while on the phone.
The affidavit described “thermal injuries” on the baby’s body and said she was dressed in a onesie over a diaper. The clothing appeared to have melted onto the diaper. Officers described the clothing as “very dirty, possibly burned on the backside.” They also found a blanket with “significant burn marks” in the living room.
