A Michigan father will die behind bars after being handed a life sentence Monday for the murder and "horrendous treatment" of his 19-month-old son, who was pummeled to death after the boy's mother "arranged for him to be adopted by a loving family," federal prosecutors say.

Eugene Rantanen, 37, of L'Anse, was convicted earlier this year of murder and first-degree child abuse for the death of his son, Carter, who was living with him on tribal land in the state's Upper Peninsula. He was sentenced Monday by U.S. District Judge Paul Maloney, who doled out the harshest punishment possible, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Western District of Michigan — stating that the sentence "will do justice," per a DOJ press release .

"The evidence at trial showed that Rantanen had care and

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