Baby brain dead after being left in tub while dad played video games, US cops say

The father filled the water in the bathtub up to the child’s chest and went into the master bedroom where he played video games on his PlayStation, police said. — Photo by Sora Khan on Unsplash

A baby is now brain dead after his father played video games while he was alone in a bathtub, authorities in Arizona said.

The 37-year-old man put his seven-month-old son in a tub April 4 after noticing the child was “sweaty”, Phoenix police said in a probable cause statement.

He filled the water up to the child’s chest and went into the master bedroom where he played video games on his PlayStation, police said.

The father told police he could see the child in the bathroom through a 1-inch space between the door hinge and frame, according to the statement.

He played games for about 10 minutes as the child played in the water, police said.

When the baby made noises like he “drank a bottle too fast”, the father ran into the bathroom and saw his child face down in the water, police said.

He tried to revive the child, but the baby’s arms and legs were limp, police said.

Then he called police.

The child was taken to a hospital and was found without any brain activity, police said.

The father was arrested on suspicion of child abuse. – The Charlotte Observer/Tribune News Service