Oxygen Insider Exclusive!

Create a free profile to get unlimited access to exclusive videos, breaking news, sweepstakes, and more!

Sign Up for Free to View
Crime News Breaking News

Man Accused Of Dipping Baby In Water So Hot It Burned Off His Skin

Anthony Patrick, Jr. was charged with felony child abuse after an 8-month-old boy sustained severe burns and also suffered a brain injury. 

By Gina Tron

A St. Louis man is accused of dunking a baby in water that was so piping hot, it burned off the 8-month-old boy’s skin and left him with a brain injury.

Anthony Patrick Jr., 26, was charged with felony child abuse or neglect causing serious injury on Sunday, the Associated Press reported.

Two days earlier, on Friday, the Cardinal Glennon Medical Center called police to investigate the boy’s injuries after he was admitted to the hospital. Not only did the hot water scald the baby’s skin so badly that it burned portions of his skin off, but he also suffered cuts to his liver, a blood clot near his kidneys and a severe brain injury. The baby underwent surgery for the brain injury.

Patrick allegedly told investigators he put the boy in a sink of hot water, police say. Doctors do not think the injuries were accidental, according to a report by the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. It’s not clear what Patrick’s relationship is to the baby boy.

He has been jailed on $250,000 bail. It’s not clear if he has a lawyer who can speak on his behalf at this time.

Just last month, a woman from Harrisburg, Ark., was arrested after she was accused by police of putting her 1-month-old daughter in scalding hot water before placing her in a dryer. Tyra Neal, 25, was arrested on suspicion of second-degree murder and abuse of a corpse after the baby was found dead in the dryer, according to the Associated Press.  Police accuse her of putting in child in the extremely hot water because the baby had diarrhea. After the infant was injured, Neal allegedly got scared, and put her in the dryer, initially blaming another child for the baby’s death. She’s in jail on a $1 million bond.

[Photo: Missouri Department of Corrections]