A SAFETY director has been jailed over the horrifying death of a five-year-old boy who burned alive inside a hyperbaric chamber as his mother desperately tried to save him.

Jeffrey Mosteller was sentenced to between 19 months and 15 years in prison after pleading no contest to involuntary manslaughter in the death of Thomas Cooper.

A pressurized oxygen chamber exploded, killing a 5-year-old patient, Thomas Cooper from Royal Oak, Michigan

Cooper was undergoing hyperbaric oxygen therapy at the Oxford Center in Troy

The little boy was undergoing hyperbaric oxygen therapy at the Oxford Center in Troy, Michigan, on January 31, 2025, when the chamber caught fire and exploded.

Thomas was being treated for ADHD and sleep apnea and was reportedly on his 36th session when disaster struck.

His mother, Annie, rushed toward the chamber after being alerted something was wrong and suffered burns as she desperately tried to reach her son, the family’s attorney previously said.

Thomas could not be rescued.

The five-year-old died in the oxygen-rich chamber, with later court records saying the fire burned for several minutes.

Mosteller, who served as the facility’s safety director, became the first of four workers charged over Thomas’ death to complete his criminal case.

Oakland County Circuit Court Judge Kwamé Rowe tore into the safety failures while handing down the sentence.

“This is arrogance,” Rowe told the court.

The judge focused on the center’s failure to use grounding straps, which are designed to safely discharge static electricity and prevent sparks.

“It was incumbent upon you to say something, to say these grounding straps are needed,” Rowe told Mosteller.

Cooper died at the scene from severe burns while his mother also suffered serious injuries trying to rescue him

Hyperbaric oxygen therapy involves patients breathing oxygen inside a pressurized chamber

Assistant Michigan Attorney General Chris Kessel said Mosteller had been part of a decision to ignore established safety guidance after limited testing.

Kessel accused those involved of believing they knew better than “doctors and scientists and engineers and safety experts.”

State prosecutors have said both the National Fire Protection Association and the chamber’s manufacturer had strict safety protocols in place.

But the Attorney General’s Office said those precautions were disregarded at the time Thomas died.

Mosteller’s attorney, Alona Sharon, argued that the center had stopped using grounding straps before her client began working there, KSLA reported.

She acknowledged, however, that he failed to correct the practice.

“I don’t think for one minute that Jeff thought he was putting Thomas’ life in danger,” Sharon said.

She also told the court, “Jeff had a wonderful rapport with Thomas. He cared for him a great deal. You could tell that Thomas was always excited to see Jeff and vice versa.”

Mosteller did not address the court before he was sentenced.

Thomas’ family also did not attend or give a victim impact statement, with prosecutors saying the tragedy remained too painful for them to speak about.

Hyperbaric oxygen therapy involves patients breathing oxygen inside a pressurized chamber.

Thomas’ stated treatment goals included ADHD symptoms, hyperactivity, sleep and overall health, according to federal court records.

The therapy was not FDA-approved for those conditions.

His family’s attorney previously said a relative had paid more than $8,000 for a course of 40 treatments.

Three other Oxford Center figures still face criminal proceedings over Thomas’ death.

They include center CEO Tamela Peterson, manager Gary Marken and chamber operator Aleta Moffitt.

A separate civil case brought by Thomas’ family is also pending.

“I genuinely hope, and my department hopes, that Mr. Mosteller can use the time that he’s incarcerated to accept responsibility for his role in an incredibly, incredibly tragic event,” Kessel said after Mosteller’s sentencing.

Source: https://www.the-sun.com/news/16939887/boy-burned-death-hyperbaric-chamber-adhd-treatment/