An East Texas man is being investigated after a now-deleted viral TikTok showed him using his three-month-old baby to wipe the snow off his car during the winter storm that blew through the state earlier this month. The Port Arthur Police Department told 12News on Sunday, January 26 that the incident constitutes child endangerment.
The Port Arthur Police Department and Child Protective Services are both investigating the case of the 25-year-old man, who has not been identified. The viral video reposted by entertainmentgisttv showed that the baby was bundled up as the man wiped the baby across the windshield.
Officials conducted a welfare check, and the baby was OK, Duriso told 12News. The baby remains in the custody of the parents as CPS investigates. Port Arthur Police Chief Tim Duriso told the news station that an arrest warrant should be issued soon.
On TikTok, the Texas man isn’t the only one to use their baby to wipe snow. In 2021, tudvisuals posted a TikTok of a father using his son to remove snow from the car. TikTok user diehardtravelmom also shared a video on January 17 of a man using his kid to brush snow off a car. Regardless of the trend, Texas police aren’t impressed.
“It’s a sad situation. I know a lot of people go to social media, and they are looking for clicks… but this is not a deal where you should put a baby on the windshield,” Duriso told the TV station.