A 25-year-old man in Texas is under investigation after allegedly using a three-month-old infant to clear snow off a car in a bid to gain viral fame on TikTok. The incident occurred during a winter storm that recently swept across the state, covering it in a blanket of snow. The Port Arthur Police Department and Child Protective Services initiated an investigation after the video surfaced online, according to local ABC and NBC affiliate KBMT.
Authorities are currently seeking an arrest warrant for the man on charges of child endangerment. The Jefferson County District Attorney’s Office could potentially issue the warrant as early as this week. The video in question is part of a disturbing trend on social media, where parents use their young children in potentially harmful stunts for laughs and likes.
The video showed the man using the infant to wipe snow off a car’s windshield. Port Arthur Police Chief Tim Duriso expressed his concern over the incident, stating that using a baby in such a manner is not a laughing matter. He emphasized that the quest for social media popularity should not come at the expense of a child’s safety.
Upon learning about the video, police conducted a welfare check on the child. They discovered that the man was not alone at the time of the incident. Two women were present, one of whom is suspected to be the mother of the child. Duriso confirmed that the baby was unharmed.
The potential legal repercussions for the two women present during the incident remain unclear. The video has since been removed from TikTok. Port Arthur is located approximately 90 miles east of Houston, near the Texas-Louisiana border.