Minnesota Mom Starved Her Baby Using Laxative: Police

TWIN CITIES, MN — A Minnesota woman is accused of giving her infant son laxatives in an attempted to starve him. The Ramsey County Attorney’s Office charged Megan Lee Kafer, 25, of Lewiston, Minnesota, with felony-level child endangerment.

Officials at a Saint Paul hospital alerted police after Kafer's son was admitted this summer for “failure to thrive." Medical staff said the baby continued to be “emaciated” despite their efforts to help him gain weight.

On July 26, staff put Kafer and her baby in a hospital room with a surveillance camera, the Pioneer Press reported. They watched as the mother apparently injected something into the baby's feeding tube with a syringe, the criminal complaint states.

The syringe later tested positive for MiraLax. The mother said she believed her actions would help the baby gain weight, according to investigators.

Kafer's parental rights have been terminated, the Star Tribune reported. She is scheduled to appear in court later this month.

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Image via Ramsey County Sheriff's Office