Sosok.ID – Having a child is the desire of some couples in the world.
Many are waiting for their children to continue their offspring, although not all of them are given luck.
However, the couple left their child hanging on a swing in dusty clothes.
The child was allegedly not touched by his parents for a week.
In fact, the poor baby’s parents did not change their clothes and diapers either.
Reported from usatoday, Saturday (3/7/2021) a four-month-old baby boy named Sterling was found dead in his swing in his parents’ apartment in Alta Vista, Iowa, United States.
Reportedly, a rash was found on the baby’s bottom in the diaper area used by baby Sterling.
Not only that, maggots were also in his diaper.
Upon investigation, it turned out that baby Sterling had been wearing the same diaper for nine to 14 days.
Doctors found the baby’s diaper was dirty and unfit.
The diaper is then used as a nest for insects that lay their eggs and hatch into maggots.
Meanwhile, the rash on baby Sterling’s bottom was caused by the diaper he was using which caused his skin to break and be exposed to e.Coli bacteria.
Of course the two parents of baby Sterling, Zachary Paul Koehn (29) and Cheyanne Harris were charged with murder and endangering children.
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“He died of diaper rash,” said Iowa Assistant Attorney General Coleman McAllister.
Not only that, the autopsy results also showed the baby died from malnutrition, dehydration, and infection.
An autopsy found the baby weighed less than 3 kg.
Apart from diapers, maggots were also found on Sterling’s skin and clothing.
This indicates that the baby’s clothes were also not changed.
Another suspicion, the baby is most likely never ‘touched’ by his parents as long as he is in the swing for more than a week.
Lawyers for both couples admitted that this was a tragedy not an accident. But prosecutors disagreed.
This is because the Koehns are experienced parents.
Because, Sterling’s baby sister or the couple’s eldest child, who is still two years old, is also in the same apartment as the victim.
But Sterling’s brother is in good health. Not like Sterling who was left to die horribly.
In addition, the Koehns also have enough money to buy baby food and supplies.
So the prosecutor highlighted this case as the fault of his parents.
Police inquest said that Sterling’s father and mother used drugs. Especially Koehn, the father.
This was said by Toni Friedrich, the nurse and the first person to arrive at the apartment after Koehn called 911 to report the baby had died.
Friedrich said Koehn showed no emotion when he entered the dark and hot bedroom where his dead son was.
“The baby’s eyes were open and it was a blank stare,” Friedrich said in court in October 2018.
“When I touched the baby’s chest, the clothes were covered in dust.”
In the end, Koehn received an additional criminal sentence for being revealed to have a history of drug use including methamphetamine.
His wife, Harris was also arrested for drug abuse. He last used methamphetamine about two or three weeks before his arrest.
What happened to baby Sterling is a huge blow to all parents in the world to pay more attention to their children.
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