Police have arrested and charged the parents of a three-year-old boy who died last year after ingesting illicit drugs in Toronto.
Fred and Jason MacDonald, who are also the parents of a girl under the age of six, were charged with accessory after the fact after the death of their son Chad MacDonald, Deputy Police Chief Peter Sloly said Thursday.
The family were also charged with endangerment of a child and failure to provide the necessaries of life.
Chad was alone with family members on the night of November 12 when he ingested some form of an illegal drug that caused respiratory distress and internal bleeding, police said at the time.
The toddler’s death was first reported by CNN affiliate CP24 and raised concerns about parental drug use, as the investigation noted that the parents have a history of drug use.
“For reasons that we don’t yet know, Chad ingested something he did not understand,” Assistant Chief Jeff McGuire told reporters at the time.