In a case that both shocks and startles, A Moncks Corner man is accused of death by child abuse when he allegedly refused to allow his 2 year old son to receive medical treatment when a complication developed. The man and his girlfriend then allegedly placed the boy in a trashcan and filled the trashcan with cement. They then left the trashcan behind an abandoned mobile home in Walterboro, SC. Investigators said that the cause of death was as yet undetermined but there was strong evidence of foul play, due to statements about the boy being abused in the past. The man then allegedly fabricated a story about the boy falling over the seawall at the Battery and being lost in the sea. The subsequent search cost Charleston County man-hours and funds looking for the lost child. Charleston child injury lawyers urge the public to report any incidents of child abuse they come in contact with to Law Enforcement immediately.
Officers investigating the incident, report that the boy had been staying with his father for summer. The Arrest Affidavit states that “the boy died from injuries and/or physical distress” around June 6 while he was in the girlfriend’s care at her Summerville home. The father was away from home when the girlfriend contacted him about “an ongoing medical issue with the child.” He allegedly ordered her not to seek medical help for his son and, upon returning home, he refused to take action himself to save the boy”. The fabricated report of the boy falling into Charleston Harbor occurred when the boy’s mother was on his way down to see him.
The pair is being held on a $250,000 dollar bail while investigators work to build a case against them. Forensic specialists took apart the concrete filled trashcan and have begun to exhume the body. Investigators are also going through medical records at MUSC where the boy had been apparently treated several times. As to the severity of the case, a neighbor was quoted as saying “it’s a crying shame,” There is no need to kill a 2-year-old child. No need whatsoever.”
The Child Abuse and Neglect Data System reports that each year, an estimated 1,760 children die from child abuse; often at the hands of someone they know. In terms of Vulnerability, Children between the ages of 1-3 years of age make up 33.7% of all reported child fatalities.
Sources: The Post and Courier, “Officials: Father let boy die Sheriff says body then encased in Concrete in trash can”, July 9, 2010
The Child Abuse and Neglect Data System
