Josiah Green, 18, was discovered unconscious and unresponsive in his bed “with burns about the body” when cops responded to a 911 call at his apartment on Wyona Street near Pitkin Avenue in New Lots around 6:45 a.m. Sunday, cops said.
The teen with special needs was found burned to death in bathtub inside his Brooklyn home — two days after his dad said he fell into scalding bathwater — in a case that has been ruled a homicide, authorities and police sources.
He was pronounced dead at the scene by EMS workers.
‘The teen’s father claimed his son fell into the bathtub two days earlier and was burned by the hot water, police sources said.
‘He said his son had a head cold that day, but he couldn’t give him medicine for it because it would interfere with his regular prescriptions, according to the sources.
‘Instead, the dad put his son — who had cerebral palsy — in a chair in the shower and ran the hot water, hoping the steam would help him breathe, sources said.
‘The father then went into another room to charge his phone when he heard a thud. He claimed he ran back into the bathroom and saw the teen had fallen off the chair, sources said. The dad picked him up and put him in bed. He also applied something to the burns instead of taking him to the hospital.
‘Clumps of skin were coming off the son’s body, which is not consistent with him only lying in the water for a short time, sources said. The dad told police he did not call the cops right away because he was afraid, according to the sources.
The New York City Office of Chief Medical Examiner said the cause was “Thermal injuries to approximately 90% of body surface area in a person with cerebral palsy due to extreme premature birth.”
Although the death has been ruled a homicide, it’s possible it was accidental. Cops and the DA will determine whether to charge anyone with a crime.
