HOUSTON – At 13 months old, Carlos Machado, the youngest of six, was the apple of his mother's eye.
"He was always smiling. He was a good baby," Cynthia Veliz said.
Memories of those happy times are all Veliz has to cling to. On Sunday morning, her son's father, Enrique Machado, came over to the house to see his son.
"His dad decided to give him a bath," Veliz said.
So Veliz went back to bed, but woke up two hours later when the phone rang. Nothing could have prepared her for what she was about to witness next.
"I went in there and I found the father asleep on the little step in the restroom and the baby was floating under the water," Veliz said.
She pulled the toddler out of the tub, woke up Machado and dialed 911. She says Machado tried giving his son CPR but it was too late.
According to court documents, Machado, a truck driver, told investigators he'd come in from Colorado, had some drinks with his co-workers and went to bathe Carlos. Investigators say Machado told them he consumed six beers, fell asleep in the bathroom and repeated many times that he was responsible for everything.
Machado faced a judge Tuesday morning after being charged with felony murder.
"He loved his son. I really do know he loved him and I really know he would never have wanted this to happen. Nothing is going to take away the pain that I feel," Veliz said.
Machado, 36, is being held on a $100,000 bond.