OAKLAND COUNTY, Mich. – Court documents have revealed some of the text messages that were sent by the CEO of the Oakland County facility after a 5-year-old boy died in a hyperbaric chamber.
Thomas Cooper was killed on Jan. 31, 2025, when the hyperbaric chamber he was receiving treatment in at the Oxford Center in Troy exploded.
CEO, 3 other workers arraigned on charges
Four workers have been arraigned on charges in connection to the death of a 5-year-old boy who was killed in a hyperbaric chamber at an Oakland County facility, and court records have revealed more information about the texts the CEO sent after the explosion.
The founder and CEO, Tamela Peterson, 58, of Brighton, was charged with second-degree murder.
Two other workers, Oxford Center Safety Manager Jeffrey Mosteller, 64, of Clinton Township, and Oxford Center Primary Management Assistant Gary Marken, 65, of Spring Arbor, were also arraigned on second-degree murder charges.
Aleta Moffitt, 60, of Rochester Hills, who prosecutors say was operating the chamber, was arraigned on the charges of involuntary manslaughter and falsifying medical records.
Peterson was given a $2 million bond.
WARNING: Some of the details included in this article are disturbing and graphic in nature.
Text messages about hyperbaric chambers, boy’s death
New documents from a swear-to hearing that was held before Magistrate Elizabeth Chiappelli at 52-4 District Court in Troy on March 7 show some of the text messages Peterson sent before and after Cooper’s death.
‘Whatever gets bodies in those chambers’
Troy Detective Danielle Trigger said investigators discovered messages where people asked Peterson if the company was promoting hyperbaric treatments for erectile dysfunction.
Peterson responded, “Whatever gets bodies in those chambers, lol.”
‘He just laid there and did nothing’
When investigators reviewed cell phones and laptops after Cooper’s death, they discovered that Peterson had sent still photos of the boy burning inside the chamber, which were taken from CCTV footage.
In the messages she sent with those photos, Trigger said Peterson stated “something to the effect of, ‘If my leg was on fire, I would at least try to hit it and put it out. He just laid there and did nothing.’”
Peterson constantly monitored video
Trigger said that message and email correspondence showed that Peterson constantly reviewed real-time video at the facility.
“The content of the correspondence made it abundantly clear that she was unbelievably involved in the oversight of the day-to-day 14 operations of the facility in Troy,” Trigger said.
More details -- Deep dive into allegations against 4 Oakland County workers in 5-year-old’s hyperbaric chamber death
2 released on bond
Local 4 learned that Marken and Moffitt have been released on bond.
Next court dates
All four employees are scheduled to appear in court on March 19 for probable cause conferences and March 26 for preliminary examinations.
