Wesley McCollum is behind bars after police say the 25-year-old man brutally beat his girlfriend’s 5-year-old son.
Police say Wesley was angry that the boy opened a Christmas present early, and that was the reason for the beating.
The incident happened in Oklahoma this week, with the boy’s mother saying she left the child with McCollum while she did some Christmas shopping, ABC 7 reported. When she returned home, the woman found that her son had bruises on his back and arms and marks on his face including a hand print on his cheek.
After the beating, the young boy was taken to a hospital but his injuries were reportedly not considered serious or life-threatening.
As WTHR reported, McCollum reportedly grew angry when the boy opened one of his Christmas presents early and decided to teach him a lesson.
The boy’s mother later opened up about the alleged beating, sharing details on Facebook about the boy’s pain from the incident.
“Words cannot explain seeing your baby like this and having no clue what happened. I ran to him like any mother would do crying, hugging him, begging what happened. ‘Wesley hurt me bad mama,’ is all he kept saying.”
The distraught mother added that she had never seen McCollum angry and did not think he was capable of committing such an act, and would not have left her young son alone with him had she any suspicion that the boy could be hurt.
Some news outlets published pictures of the abuse the young boy suffered, showing deep bruises across his cheeks.
Wesley McCollum of Okmulgee, #Oklahoma beat child for opening #Christmas gift early https://t.co/N0WFzoFx54
— terra malum (@terra_malum) December 23, 2017
This is not the first time that a story of alleged abuse from a babysitting boyfriend has gone viral. Last year, a story from Indiana gained nationwide headlines after a 5-month-old boy was beaten to death and the child’s father, Connor Filley, was charged with murder.
News reports noted that the man admitted to attacking the child in a fit of rage when the infant would not stop crying. Reports noted that Filley admitted to slapping the boy, and when the infant still did not calm down he slammed the boy’s body against a wall.
Wesley McCollum has been arrested on charges of child abuse and child neglect for allegedly beating the boy who opened his Christmas present early. The boy’s mother also filed a protective order against McCollum.
