A North Carolina man is behind bars after he isolated his toddler in a room with a space heater, resulting in the 2-year-old’s tragic death.
Videos by Suggest
According to a statement by the Moore County Sheriff’s Office, deputies and emergency medical personnel were called to a home in the 100 block of Shady Wood Court in West End on Dec. 2, 2024. The child, identified as River Carter, was pronounced dead at the scene.
Law enforcement officials revealed that investigators determined the toddler had been isolated in a room with a space heater for more than 12 hours. During that time, the child was exposed to elevated temperatures from the space heater.
Following a thorough investigation into the incident, authorities arrested River’s father, Aaron Lynwood Carter of Fayetteville, on Jan. 7.
The 27-year-old father has been charged with one count of felony involuntary manslaughter. He also received one count of felony child abuse inflicting serious bodily injury. He has been committed to the Moore County Detention Center under a $500,000 bond.
His first court appearance was scheduled in Moore County District Court on Jan. 9.
The Toddler Was Placed in His Room After Developing a Low-Grade Fever
The Daily Mail reported that the medical examiner explained River had put the toddler in bed at around 3 p.m. because he had a “low-grade fever.”
The father alleged that he checked on the child at 5 p.m. Carter turned off the central air in the house and put on “space hearts in each room to save power.”
Both Carter and River’s mother, Katy Ann Gilliam, told law enforcement they thought they heard the toddler “moving around” at 6 a.m. the next morning. However, neither of them checked on him.
Someone in the home called 911 hours later.
“When law enforcement entered, the fan and the space heater were not on,” the medical examiner’s report revealed. “But the room temperature was noted to be extremely hot (estimated over 100 degrees).”
Carter did not tell responding law enforcement what setting he had the space heater on during the night. However, investigators said that a fan placed near the heater was “warped,” presumably from the excessive heat.
The medical examiner stated the toddler “died as a result of dehydration related to high temperatures in the room where he was sleeping.”
“Overall, it is exceedingly concerning that River was left alone for 15 hours while sick,” the report pointed out. “And in an enclosed hot environment.”
The report added there was no evidence that he was placed in this injurious environment with the active intent to harm him.