Crime & Safety
Man Struck Boy with Belt 20 Times, Deputies Say
The child told his teacher that the beating was the result of a bad behavior report he received from school.
A Wesley Chapel man faces a child abuse charge after authorities say he struck a 7-year-old with a leather belt about 20 times.
According to the Pasco County Sheriff's Office, the boy told his teacher, a deputy and a child protective services investigator that he was beaten by Thomas Walter Day Jr. because he got a bad behavior report from school on March 7.
A child protection team conducted a physical exam on the child on March 12 and reported postive findings for abuse, including significant bruising and linear marks on his left arm, left leg and upper buttocks that were consistent with a high velocity belt or strap injury, the report stated.
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Day, 32, was arrested March 14 and charged with child abuse. He was released from the Land O' Lakes jail on $5,000 bond.
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