The father was performing CPR on the teen when paramedics arrived at the house, said John Dwight Jefferson, of the Pinetops Rescue Squad.
The teen, who was identified as Tyler Gene McMillan, was in cardiac arrest and was taken to Heritage Hospital, where he was pronounced dead, Jefferson said.
"People are people. When it happens, you still always ask the same question – why?" Jefferson said.
Edgecombe County Sheriff James Knight said the boy's wrists and ankles were bound with plastic ties and that he was also tied to the tree with some other material. Although a rope was seen dangling from a tree in the yard outside the house Friday, he wouldn't confirm whether that was used to tie the boy.
Investigators found bruises on the boy's wrists and ankles, Knight said, declining to comment on whether other marks were found on his body.
A 7-year-old and a 9-year-old who live in the McMillan home have been placed in the custody of the Department of Social Services, authorities said.
Tyler McMillan's mother, Michelle "Mickey" Sasser McMillan, died of cancer several years ago.
Carolyn Pollard, who lives across the road from the McMillans, said the family moved to the area about three months ago from Florida. The children were homeschooled, and the family kept to themselves, she said.
[great, more whack homeschoolers for the statists to use as fodder to brand all of us. Anyway, there's video at the link which shows a fairly normal rural brick home]
The boy had languished outdoors while the area was blanketed in dense, acrid smoke from the Pocosin Lakes wildfire to the east. State officials had warned residents to stay indoors because of the smoke's health threat.
Both of the McMillans are widowed, according to past news reports.
Sandra McMillan's first husband, Dwayne "Scott" Wilburn of Rockledge, Fla., died in 2002 at age 38, according to his newspaper obituary. The couple had a daughter, Brynana Shay Wilburn.
Brice McMillan's first wife, Michelle Sasser "Mickie" McMillan of Greenville, died in 2004 at age 37, according to her newspaper obituary. The couple had two sons, Tyler Gene McMillan and Ryan Wesley McMillan.
Records show that Brice McMillan has been convicted of several driving violations, but nothing more serious.
Sandra McMillan was convicted of theft in Florida in 1991 and received probation, records show.
Their first court appearances on the murder and child abuse charges are scheduled for Monday.
Poor kid...he was about nine when his mom died from cancer. This kid had a rough life (probably remembered alot about his real mom and her illness). Dad remarries (quickly) a woman with her own loss and child to deal with. Blended families are not easy...and I would guess that both ‘sides’ of children were still grieving the loss of their biological parent. Can become a volatile mix.