"Fed Her Formula Twice a Day": Father Arrested on Suspicion of Child Abuse Resulting in Death of 17-Month-Old Daughter

Fed her formula only before and after work after his wife left home
No signs of physical abuse; police investigate alleged neglect

A father in his 30s has been taken into custody on suspicion of neglecting his 17-month-old daughter, leaving her alone at home while he went to work and feeding her only formula twice a day, resulting in her death.

On the 30th, the Pyeongtaek Branch of the Suwon District Court issued an arrest warrant for A, who is suspected of child abuse resulting in death, after a pre-arrest hearing. Presiding Judge Kim Gyu-hwa said there was concern that A might flee or destroy evidence.

A is suspected of leaving his 17-month-old daughter, identified as B, alone at their home in Pyeongtaek after his wife left following an argument early this month, and failing to properly care for her for more than 10 days. He allegedly went to work and fed her formula only twice a day, once before leaving for work and once after returning home, resulting in her death.

At around 10 p.m. on the 28th, he called 119 himself and reported, "The baby isn't breathing." No physical injuries, such as fractures or bruises, were found on B after she was taken to the hospital. However, she was reportedly suffering from severe malnutrition and was much thinner than other children her age. After the hospital notified authorities and requested a joint response from the fire authorities, police arrived and arrested A at the hospital after he partially admitted to neglecting the child.

A, who works for a company, reportedly told police during questioning that he had "left the child alone and gone to work because there was no one to look after her" and that he "fed her formula about twice a day, once before leaving for work and once after returning home."

The Women and Juvenile Crimes Investigation Unit of the Gyeonggi Nambu Provincial Police Agency said that it had received an initial verbal opinion from the National Forensic Service, which performed an autopsy on B's body that day, that "the cause of death is presumed to be malnutrition." The specific cause of death and details of her physical condition at the time, including her weight, are expected to be confirmed after the National Forensic Service sends its detailed autopsy report.

There had been no previous reports of suspected child abuse involving the family, and the home reportedly had no video recording devices, such as a home camera.

Based on the initial autopsy findings, police plan to closely question A about whether he knew of the risk of malnutrition but left B unattended. They will also conduct digital forensics on the mobile phone they seized and compare its findings with his account to determine whether he actually returned home every day and cared for B. Police also plan to question the child's mother, who left the home, about the circumstances of the case and whether she bears any responsibility for the neglect.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.