Jesse Lee Bonacci-Koski, 27, is serving an eight-year prison sentence in the death of Bentley Joe Lewis Koski in Tower.
Evidence presented at trial suggested Bonacci-Koski was babysitting Bentley when he left the house for several hours to use drugs. He returned to find the residence in flames, then stole a neighbor's car to flee the scene without attempting to alert authorities about his nephew, who remained in an upstairs crib.
Bentley was declared dead at the scene of the fire, 813 Third St. N., on the morning of Aug. 2, 2017.
A next-door neighbor — a volunteer firefighter — arrived home at 7:45 a.m. and found the house on fire, according to court documents. The back door was unlocked and open but no one responded to his knocking.