‘I Accidentally Put Her in the Oven’: Baby Placed in Hot Oven Instead of Crib, Police Say

KANSAS CITY, MO - A Missouri grand jury has indicted a mother accused of killing her infant daughter by allegedly placing her in an oven instead of her crib.

Mariah Thomas, 26, has been held in the Jackson County Jail since February on charges of endangering the welfare of a child. Last week, the grand jury added an involuntary manslaughter charge. If convicted, Thomas faces 10 to 30 years in prison for endangerment and three to 10 years for manslaughter.

Kansas City police responded to Thomas’ home on Feb. 9 for reports of a “non-breathing infant.” Upon arrival, officers encountered a male relative who reported finding the baby deceased in her crib. The child was later located in a car seat in the living room with severe thermal injuries. The relative told police he had left the home earlier, leaving Thomas and the child in “good spirits.”

Around 1 p.m., Thomas called the man, claiming something was wrong with the baby and urging him to return home. When he arrived, he smelled smoke and found the baby deceased in her crib. When questioned, Thomas allegedly stated, “I thought I put [the baby] in her crib and I accidentally put her in the oven.”

Her onesie had melted onto her diaper, and investigators recovered a burned baby blanket. Thomas, who declined to speak with detectives, remains jailed on a $100,000 bond.

Jackson County Prosecutor Jean Peters Baker called the tragedy “gruesome."

“We trust the criminal justice system to respond appropriately to these awful circumstances,” she said in a statement.

Thomas is scheduled to stand trial on Jan. 13.