An American couple who moved to New Zealand after their young son died of suspected neglect have returned to the United States.
It's alleged that Timothy and Sarah Johnson's son, Seth Johnson, seven, died covered in vomit on a mattress after a weeks-long illness that went medically untreated. Instead during his illness, Seth's parents increased his vitamin intake, treated him with "medical honey", and prayed over him.
Seth died on March 30, 2015. The couple was charged in December 2016 with gross misdemeanour child neglect, however, warrants were issued for the arrest after they failed to appear for a hearing a month later.
Sarah's attorney Gordon Mohr said the pair weren't trying to evade capture but had instead moved to Auckland with their other children after a child protection investigation ended without finding any wrongdoing before the criminal charges were filed.
Mohr said Timothy and Sarah told authorities in Minnesota that they wanted to stay in New Zealand. After arriving here, they had started new careers and allowed their attorneys to represent them at subsequent criminal court hearings.
But after more than five years, the pair has returned to the United States.
According to local paper the Star Tribune, Timothy appeared in Hennepin County District Court, Minnesota last week in connection with Seth's death. He was jailed briefly and then released without bail but is due back in court on August 5. Sarah was also scheduled to appear in court earlier this week.
In the lead-up to his death, Seth endured extensive trauma from an inflamed pancreas and possible infections, court records show. In his final days, he was allegedly left in the care of his 16-year-old brother while Timothy and Sarah went to a wedding out of town.
When police arrived at the couple's home in Plymouth, Minnesota the day Seth died, the seven-year-old was found on the bathroom floor and Timothy was trying to resuscitate him. However, emergency medical responders declared him dead at the scene.
Seth had many bruises, as well as "breaks on his skin on the majority of his body", according to the charges.
Seth was adopted by Timothy and Sarah at age four and no concerns were raised about his health. But in the weeks before his death, he stopped sleeping, would shake on occasion, and developed blisters and other marks on his legs, along with lesions on his heels. Timothy and Sarah explained that Seth would apparently throw himself down the stairs and was hitting his head.
But the couple had "issues with going to doctors" and never sought medical attention for their ailing son, according to court records. They said they didn't want Seth on medication and came to their own conclusion from personal research that he had post-traumatic stress disorder from a brain injury.
They also claimed Seth had fetal alcohol syndrome, but authorities didn't find a record of this diagnosis.
The day before Seth's death, the 16-year-old brother looking after him called Timothy and Sarah and said the young boy wasn't eating or interacting. The 16-year-old said Seth had stopped talking and couldn't get out of bed.
When Timothy and Sarah arrived home that night, Seth was unresponsive. According to court records, "they prayed for his health".
The following morning, Timothy found Seth unresponsive on the mattress and covered in vomit. He and Sarah cleaned the seven-year-old off and began CPR, then called 911.
