Baby dies after accidently being put in oven

Around 1:30 p.m. on Friday, the Kansas City Police Department was called to a house near 41st Street and Forest Avenue. Upon arrival, crews found an unresponsive child who was declared dead at the scene.

Detectives said the circumstances around the child’s death were suspicious enough to cause concern and they began an investigation.

On Saturday, more information was released by the Jackson County Prosecutor’s Office, including charges against the infant’s mother, 25-year-old Mariah Thomas.

Reportedly, first responders at the scene noticed burns on the child, who was not breathing when they arrived. They said Thomas told them that she was putting the child down for a nap but accidentally put the child in the oven instead of the crib.

According to the Jackson County Prosecutor’s Office, Thomas “faces the Class A felony of Endangering the Welfare of a Child in the 1st Degree, Death of a Child.”

Prosecutor Jean Peters Baker issued a statement, acknowledging the gruesome nature of the incident.