Death of twin baby boy after suspected kidnapping is ruled a ‘sudden unexplained infant death,’ Ohio coroner says
By Celina Tebor and Holly Yan, CNN
A 6-month-old baby who survived an alleged kidnapping alongside his twin brother died one month later in a “sudden unexplained infant death,” an Ohio coroner’s office said Friday.
An autopsy following Ky’air Thomas’ January 28 death revealed “the infant was placed face down (prone) on an adult bed with excess bedding and pillows (unsafe sleep environment), unsupervised,” the Franklin County Coroner’s Office said in a written statement.
“It is well documented that infants under the age of 8 months have limited strength in the neck musculature to reposition their airway when encountering possible obstructions,” the coroner’s office said.
“This is a form of oxygen deprivation (anoxic brain injury), however, because a contributory component of mechanical or obstructive asphyxia can be neither confirmed nor excluded in this infant’s death … the manner of death is best ruled as Undetermined.”
The coroner’s office said it found “no evidence of trauma, foul play, abuse, or neglect.”
Previously, authorities spelled Ky’air’s name as Kyair Thomass.
The baby first made national headlines after he and his twin brother, Kason, were allegedly kidnapped in Columbus, Ohio.
On December 19, Ky’air and Kason were left inside a running car as their mother, Wilhelmina Thomas, was picking up a restaurant order while working as a DoorDash driver, according to Columbus police.
When she returned, the car and her 5-month-old boys had vanished.
Ky’air was later found alive, abandoned near the Dayton International Airport. Days later, Kason was found alive inside the stolen car more than 100 miles away, in Indianapolis.
Suspect Nalah Jackson, 24, was taken into custody on suspicion of kidnapping and faces state and federal charges, authorities said.
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CNN’s Hannah Sarisohn, Amanda Musa and Harmeet Kaur contributed to this report.
