Police arrest father who slept while baby fell into fire pit

Federal Way police have arrested a father who said he fell asleep with his 7-month-old boy near a backyard fire pit Saturday night and awoke to find the child burned to death.

The 37-year-old man was arrested Tuesday and will be booked into the King County Jail on suspicion of first-degree manslaughter.

Police earlier interviewed the man and his wife and took a blood sample from the father. Toxicology results won't be available for days.

The King County Medical Examiner's Office said an autopsy won't be available until Wednesday at the earliest.

The father told police that he fell asleep holding his child while sitting on a bench next to the pit. He said he awoke to find the child missing and went into the house to see if the boy was with his mother, then returned to the pit and discovered the body shortly before midnight.

The baby suffered "severe burns to his whole body," police spokeswoman Cathy Schrock said. "The preliminary investigation is that he fell into a burning pit."

Investigators also questioned neighbors and others who might have been at the house Saturday in the 2600 block of Southwest 333rd Place.

Schrock said she did not know whether a party or other gathering was held at the house Saturday.

A spokeswoman for the state Department of Social and Health Services said the agency has had no prior involvement with the family, which also includes a 4-year-old child. That sibling is "safe and with the mother, who has agreed to a safety plan and is cooperating with the agency," the spokeswoman said.

Police and Child Protective Services are continuing their investigations. Police ask anyone with information to call 253-835-6700 or 911.