OAKLAND — A local resident was arrested on suspicion of child abuse last month, after his 3-year-old son was found deceased in his apartment, authorities said.
The Dec. 17 incident is still under investigation, and no criminal charges have been filed. But the boy’s father, a 45-year-old Oakland man, was arrested and held briefly as police gathered evidence of possible criminal wrongdoing, records show.
Authorities say it was the 45-year-old man who called 911 to report that he found his son dead in a bathtub in his apartment on the 5700 block of Harmon Avenue in Oakland. He insisted that he’d left the boy unattended for only a few minutes, a claim that investigators doubt.
The boy was pronounced dead at a hospital roughly 40 minutes after the father called 911. But officers who responded said that rigor mortis had set in, a possible indication the boy had been left for longer than his dad claimed, authorities said.
Police say there was drug paraphernalia and alcohol bottles around the home, some which the boy would have been able to access. Investigators spoke to others who complained that the father had been known to use drugs and alcohol when caring for his son, authorities said.
The 911 call was made a little after 3 p.m. on Dec. 17. Authorities seized electronic devices from the father and conducted a sweep of the East Oakland home. They say they’re waiting for an official cause of death from the coroner’s office before bringing the case to the Alameda County District Attorney’s Office for possible filing of criminal charges.