Mom Brought Her Sick Toddler to the Hospital. During His 5-Day Stay, Cameras Captured Her Doing the Unthinkable

An Iowa woman was sentenced to 10 years in prison on Friday, Aug. 29, for injecting her 2-year-old son with insulin, which made him ill.

Alexandra Marie Frost, 27, pleaded guilty in June to child endangerment resulting in bodily injury and administering harmful substances, the Johnson County Attorney’s Office confirmed to PEOPLE.

The case came to light in March of 2023 after Frost brought her toddler to the University of Iowa Health Care Stead Family Children’s Hospital.

According to a criminal complaint obtained by PEOPLE, the boy had “low blood sugar levels that required medical intervention including the administration of glucose, and lab tests results indicated his insulin levels were very high.”

The boy’s health continued to deteriorate and there “appeared to be anomalies” leading physicians to believe it was Munchausen syndrome by proxy — where a caregiver makes up or causes an illness or injury to a person, per a search warrant obtained by PEOPLE.

According to the warrant, the boy’s glucose levels would drop and then stabilize.

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On March 13, 2023, hospital staff activated a camera in the child’s room and the following day, footage appeared to show Frost holding a syringe and injecting her son in his foot, per the warrant.

“After injecting [her son’s] foot, Frost walks to where the ‘SHARPS’ container is located and appeared to place the syringe into the container,” according to the warrant. “Prior to the injections [victim] appeared to be calm and when Frost injected his foot, [victim] becomes agitated and screams consistent with being in pain.”

Medical staff told investigators that getting injected with insulin “will lower a person’s glucose levels, which can cause serious health problems, including death,” per the warrant.  

Frost was reportedly the only person who was with her son on a regular basis at the hospital.

After the boy was removed from her care by the Iowa Department of Health and Human Services, he had no more issues with his glucose levels, according to the warrant.