A Maryland boy has succumbed to injuries after reportedly being brutally beaten by his mother’s boyfriend for eating a slice of birthday cake without permission, according to the Frederick News-Post.
The 9-year-old, from Hagerstown, was beaten to the point of unconsciousness and died over the weekend at the Children’s National Medical Center in Washington, D.C.
As of Monday, Robert Leroy Wilson was being held on $1 million bond, up from $600,000, on charges of first-degree child abuse resulting in severe physical injury, first- and second-degree assault, and reckless endangerment. Police Capt. Paul Kifer said that investigators were scheduled to meet Tuesday afternoon with the state’s attorney’s office to discuss additional charges related to the young boy’s death.
Jack Kirby Garcia, who had celebrated his birthday just three days earlier, reportedly took a piece of cake on June 30 and was handcuffed by a relative, according to the News-Post. The relative said that the young boy would be put in handcuffs whenever he stole things. Wilson then went into the room with the young boy and began to beat him.
The little boy was left unconscious in the room for hours. An ambulance was called, but before responders could examine Jack, his mother told them that he was merely congested and that he did not need medical attention.
Later in the evening, an ambulance was again called to the home. At that point Jack was unresponsive, and officers who had responded with the ambulance detailed extensive bruises and abrasions on the boy’s face and body, according to the news site.
Read more at the Frederick News-Post.