US: Woman forces 4-year-old son to swallow ant poison

A mother has been accused of forcibly feeding her 4-year-old son ant poison and telling her other two children she planned to kill them and herself. Paw Eh, 31, from the US state of Texas, has been arrested and charged with attempted capital murder.

According to court records cited by the Dallas Morning News, Eh's 12-year-old daughter told police her mother called her 4-year-old son into the kitchen on 1 November, where she filled a teaspoon with ant poison and water. When she tried to force-feed the boy, he refused to open his mouth, which is when he was apparently slapped. This caused him to open his mouth when the woman fed him the poison.

According to CBS DFW, when Eh tried to poison her older children, they ran to their grandmother's apartment in the same community. The police said the 4-year-old is in stable condition and the other two children are being looked after by a family member.

The elder of the two sons, aged 7, recalled how their mother told them of her plans to kill them and herself, court records said. "My mom wants to kill us with poison powder that kills ants and stuff," the older boy told police.

A neighbour, Thang Awi, told CBS DFW: "Some people say the mother is not 100 percent [fit mentally]." Another, Sharl Nie, said all Eh "talked about was she couldn't sleep at night or she was thinking about suicide."

"She's been sick for a long time. I don't know about medicines, but she was taking some from the doctor," Nie said.

Eh does not appear to have a prior history with the Child Protective Services department, a spokeswoman for the agency, Marleigh Meisner, told the Dallas Morning News. Eh is being held in Dallas County jail with bail set for $500,000 (£324,049).