Parents kill 2-year-old son after placing a mattress over his crib and weighing it down with 50 pounds of rock salt: Police

Police have arrested a man and a woman and charged them with a litany of felonies after their 2-year-old son suffocated to death after they allegedly tied and weighted down a mattress over his crib so he wouldn’t be able to climb out, WGAL-TV reports.

The parents, Justin Dwyer and Courtney Stash, are facing a charge of involuntary manslaughter in the child’s death.

The boy, named Eoin, died in April but his parents were not charged until Tuesday.

Dwyer and Stash told investigators that they were trying to prevent the boy from climbing out of his crib, which they said he would often do.

So the couple allegedly affixed a mattress over the crib, put 50-pound bags of rock salt over the mattress so it would stay in place and then tied the mattress down using a bungee cord.

On the morning of April 25, Stash found Eoin unresponsive and slumped over the crib, prompting an urgent 911 call.

A coroner has since ruled that the boy died by asphyxiation.

In addition to involuntary manslaughter, the couple faces charges of conspiracy related to involuntary manslaughter, aggravated assault, conspiracy related to aggravated assault, unlawful restraint, conspiracy related to unlawful restraint, endangering the welfare of a child and conspiracy related to the endangering of a child.

They also have been charged with simple assault, conspiracy related to simple assault, recklessly endangering another person and conspiracy related to recklessly endangering another person – all misdemeanors.

A judge set bail for both at $250,000 each on Wednesday.

Eoin was among a set of triplets who were born on Christmas Day in 2014. The couple’s other children are staying with relatives, according to prosecutors.

[Featured Image: Lebanon County Correctional Facility]