8-year sentence upheld for dad convicted of killing infant with drug-laced milk

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An appellate court in Daejeon upheld an eight-year prison sentence, Friday, on a man who was convicted last year of inflicting fatal damage to his three-month-old child through drug-laced milk.

The Daejeon High Court confirmed the sentence on the 41-year-old man whose infant daughter died on Jan. 13, 2023 after drinking baby formula mixed with zolpidem ― a medication commonly used for the short-term treatment of sleeping problems.

The cause of the baby's death was difficulty breathing, which is one of the most common side effects of the drug.

A panel of judges, led by Park Jin-hwan, rejected the father’s claim that he did so mistakenly and that he did everything he could to save her life.

The court said it was difficult to believe his claim that he possessed the drug for his own use.

“Even if he did not give her zolpidem intentionally, he left her untreated, which led to her death. That meets the condition for the charge of child abuse resulting in death,” the court added.

According to the prosecution, the man did not bring her to a nearby hospital immediately because he was wanted by police for fraud.