Manchester Parents Arrested After 2 Babies Left Alone In Apartment

MANCHERSTER, NH — Two Manchester parents were arrested Wednesday morning after being accused of leaving their babies alone in an apartment unclothed and with visible bruises, according to the Manchester Police Department.

Employees with the Manchester Planning and Community Development who were doing a walkthrough of the property called police around 10:45 a.m. after finding a 5-month-old baby strapped in an infant swinging bed and a 1-year old on the kitchen floor, police said.

Officers noted that the apartment was in disarray with clothing piled up and various household items and tools that posed a potential risk of injury to the children, according to police. There were also liquids like cooking oils and cleaning agents on the floor.

The tenants — 18-year-old Megan Bancroft, the mother of both children, and 21-year-old Justice Forsythe, the father one of them — arrived at the scene at some point.

Police determined that the children had been left alone for more than an hour and that the infant's injuries were serious. Both were assessed at a hospital and the infant was sent to a Boston Hospital for treatment.

Bancroft and Forsythe were arrested and charged with second degree assault and endangering the welfare of a child. Bancroft was also charged with possession of a prescription drug.

No additional information was available Thursday.