A Virginia father is facing a 20-year prison sentence following the tragic death of his 2-year-old son, who was found with cocaine in his system after being left in a Pack ‘n Play with snakes.

On Monday, 25-year-old Cinceir Croxton was handed the sentence for the death of his son, Cinceir “CJ” Croxton Jr. Last fall, Croxton admitted guilt to charges of second-degree murder, child abuse, and drug offenses.

According to a report by local ABC affiliate WRIC, the incident occurred on December 7, 2023. Croxton, along with the child’s mother, Kahleighya Coleman, faced arrest several months following the incident.

The family had been residing at an Econo Lodge in Spotsylvania, partly to avoid scrutiny over the child’s welfare. After Croxton found his son unresponsive, he called emergency services. CJ was transported to the hospital, where he later succumbed to his condition.

Doctors alerted authorities when CJ tested positive for cocaine. Upon investigation, detectives from the Spotsylvania County Sheriff’s Office discovered cocaine on a PlayStation and inside an unlocked safe in the hotel room, alongside a firearm hidden in a clothes hamper. Law enforcement confiscated approximately 70 grams of cocaine and $4,000 in cash.

The room also contained a Pack ‘n Play with a reptile cage housing snakes, as reported by WRIC. CJ had tested positive for salmonella, a bacterium often transmitted by snakes. Despite this, Croxton and Coleman refused hospital treatment for the salmonella infection.

CJ also had sickle cell disease, which needed treatment every two months, but he received none. Child Protective Services began investigating the parents when CJ was 6 months old after the agency received a complaint that Croxton would leave CJ alone in his car seat with loud music playing when he was fussy because he could not “tolerate him crying.”

However, Croxton moved the family from their home which made it difficult for CPS to find them. CPS marked the case incomplete.

Coleman pleaded guilty to second-degree murder and child abuse charges last month and was sentenced to 15 years in prison, WRIC reported.

Croxton claimed at sentencing that he loved his son “dearly,” but Judge William Glover said CJ’s living situation “inevitably” killed him.

“None of these actions were accident,” Glover told Croxton, per WRIC. “It was a series of choices you made.”