Police: Florida Baby Violently Beaten, Bitten, And Burned By Mom’s Boyfriend

A Florida baby is recovering after authorities in Polk County say he was violently assaulted by his mother’s boyfriend. ABC Action News reports that 28-year-old Shawn Tucci has been arrested in association with an incident that has left an 11-month-old child badly injured and a mother’s trust severely violated. The details surrounding this horrifying case of alleged child abuse are shocking.

The child, dubbed as Baby Levi in media reports, was left in the care of Tucci when his mother had to go to work. The Daily Ridge reports that the incident took place last Friday, Sept. 16, between 4:30 p.m., and around 10:45 p.m., when the mother returned from work early to check on her baby. It was at this time that the victim’s mother discovered a “large amount of blood” on a bouncy seat belonging to the little boy. Prior to this, she had allegedly received a call from her boyfriend — described in some reports as the infant’s “babysitter,” claiming that there was an accident involving the 11-month-old child.

According to the mother of Baby Levi, her boyfriend called her at work to inform her that he had tripped and fell while holding the baby. She alleges that Shawn Tucci told her that the “injuries were not bad.” However, the reality of the injuries suffered by the 11-month-old was reportedly worse than the story provided by her boyfriend during the phone call. Instead of a scraped forehead, Baby Levi suffered injuries that included various bruises on his jaw and hands, as well as burns and bite marks to various parts of his body. He suffered bite marks to his arms and second-degree burns on his genitals. Shawn Tucci is accused of using a cigarette to inflict the various burns found on the 11-month-old victim’s body. Medical staff at Lakeland Regional Health Center say that the Florida baby’s injuries were not at all consistent with the story provided by the mother’s boyfriend.

Baby ‘had cocaine and cannabis in body when he was beaten to death’ https://t.co/EpkmuMs7UL

— drjonesaa (@drjonesaa) May 26, 2016

Unfortunately, this is far from the first time a horrific case of child abuse has gripped media attention. It’s also not the only time someone has been accused of abusing the children of their romantic partners. Earlier this year, an Indiana man was arrested on accusations that he beat his girlfriend’s baby to death. Police say that 26-year-old Steven Filley hit the 5-month-old baby in the face and smacked him into a wall when he became fussy and wouldn’t calm down.

Also this year, another Florida baby reportedly died by the allegedly abusive hands of his mother’s boyfriend. Police say that the 11-month baby was beaten and bashed so badly that his back broke, causing him to “bleed to death within seconds or minutes.” Like this latest Florida case, the man arrested for beating the infant to death had been trusted to care for him. The Florida man accused of killing the child had also once been acquitted of murder but has also been arrested on charges of marijuana possession.

.@SCCoSherff & #ValleyMed raise funeral funds for baby allegedly beaten to death by dad. https://t.co/jtPPt1a72s https://t.co/nToKAiWXe4

— Kris Sanchez (@KrisNBC) August 26, 2016

As for this latest case out of Polk County, authorities say that the Florida baby is expected to make a full recovery. The child’s mother has referred to him as a “hero,” while he recovers from the alleged abuse that left him terribly injured. Meanwhile, the man accused of committing the crime has been arrested and is waiting to be arraigned on charges associated with child abuse.

[Featured Image by Polk County Sheriff’s Office]