DECATUR, Ill. (WAND) – A father accused of battering his children and using a belt on one of them is behind bars.
Police say the 23-year-old suspect, who WAND-TV is not naming because doing so could identify the victims, left his 7-month-old and 2-year-old children with bruises. Officers report noticing bruises on the 2-year-old boy’s stomach, lower back, buttocks, thighs and shoulders.
The mother told officers the father would spank the 2-year-old with his hands and punch him in the arms “all the time”, and around Nov. 28 started using a belt because battering him was “no longer effective”. Police say the father admitted to beating the 2-year-old and said he was “making him a stronger man”.
Officers say they found bruises on the 7-month-old child’s buttocks. They say the father admitted to using a hand to spank that child.
The father watches both children while the mother works, police say.
The suspect is behind bars in Macon County with bond set at $150,000.
