6-month-old died after Amish 'healer' treated him with lavender oil while he was 'turning blue': Police

A Missouri antheral who billed himself arsenic a healer for the Amish assemblage has been charged with involuntary manslaughter.

Sam Shetler, 42, was arrested successful transportation with a fig of unrelated crimes, including sex trafficking and kidnapping, successful March. Police said that implicit the people of that investigation, they connected Shetler to the decease of a 6-month-old lad who was recovered unresponsive by his parents successful March 2025. The babe died, and his parents told detectives that they brought their lad to Shetler, whom they knew arsenic a "holistic doctor" successful the Amish assemblage successful Booneville, Missouri.

According to a probable origin affidavit reviewed by Law&Crime, Shetler ran the Mercy and Truth Retreat, which was already nether investigation by the Cooper County Sheriff's Office aft allegations were made that Shetler was sexually abusing respective teenage girls and young women. When the parents brought their 6-month-old lad to Shetler for attraction aft noticing helium was "turning blue," helium allegedly performed a "lavender breathing treatment" connected the lad connected March 6, 2025, and sent him home.

The parents recovered the lad unresponsive and "blue successful color" erstwhile they tried to aftermath him from a nap. When they could not find Shetler, they went to a neighbour who was not Amish to telephone 911 for help. Emergency aesculapian unit arrived astatine the country and determined the babe was already deceased.

Police said the autopsy of the babe revealed that helium had respective viral infections including RSV and COVID-19 erstwhile helium died. His origin of decease was listed arsenic "pneumonia complicating polyviral respiratory infection."

One twelvemonth later, portion authorities were investigating the enactment transgression charges, detectives spoke to idiosyncratic who worked for the Mercy and Truth Retreat nether Shetler's direction. The worker told detectives that the Amish assemblage viewed Shetler arsenic an "actual" doc oregon "healer" who led the assemblage to judge that "English," oregon non-Amish, aesculapian doctors "do not cognize what they are doing."

When it came to treating the alleged victim, the worker told detectives that Shetler instructed the unit to dainty the baby's breathing issues with an lipid diffuser. The worker said Shetler allegedly neglected to cheque connected the baby, thing helium reportedly promised the boy's parents helium would do, due to the fact that helium was "too engaged with the girls and the horses." Police said the unit noticed the baby's information was "declining."

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According to the aesculapian examiner, the babe whitethorn person been saved if helium had received accepted aesculapian treatment.

Shetler was charged with involuntary manslaughter successful transportation with the baby's death. He besides faces 3 counts of enactment trafficking, 4 counts of kidnapping, and 1 number each of sodomy and intersexual abuse. He is being held astatine the Cooper County Jail without bond. His adjacent tribunal day is scheduled for May 13.