Baby put in hospital after 'severe' abuse

PROVO — Police arrested an Orem man New Year's Eve after he allegedly admitted to hitting, spanking and punching his girlfriend's 23-month-old son.

Jason R. Arias was booked into the Utah County Jail for investigation of child abuse on $25,000 cash-only bail.

The man had been watching the baby boy on Dec. 30 while the mother was at work, according to a police affidavit filed in 4th District Court.

Around 8 p.m. the 23-year-old man called his girlfriend to say the child had fallen off the table and "was not doing very well," according to the affidavit.

He said the child had a bruise on his head and was acting sleepy, according to the affidavit.

When the girlfriend got home, the baby was still sleepy, so the couple decided to wait until morning to see how he was doing, police said.

The next morning, the baby was still sick and began throwing up, so the mother took him to Utah Valley Regional Medical Center to be examined, police said.

Medical personnel found multiple bruises on the child's head and body, with fresh bruising and red marks on the left side of the face, according to the affidavit.

At this point, crisis workers called police, who responded to the hospital and were told by doctors that the bruises were less than 24 hours old, according to the affidavit.

The red marks also appeared to be in the shape of a hand and one mark had the appearance of a fist, according to the affidavit.

Doctors also pointed out bruises on the buttocks, a scab over his right eye and bruising on the abdomen, police said.

The mother told police the injury over the right eye happened when a sibling accidentally hit the young boy with a baseball bat, but she couldn't explain the other marks, according to the affidavit.

She said the marks on the child's head weren't there when she went to work but were there when she got home, according to the affidavit.

The child was taken by ambulance to Primary Children's Medical Center, said Provo Police Sgt. Scott Jensen.

"He was admitted there, and protective services were notified," Jensen said. "There were some pretty serious concerns. Definitely not the worst (abuse), but it was severe."

The boyfriend was contacted and later interviewed at the police station, where he allegedly admitted to hitting the child at least twice with an open hand on the right side of the face, making the child's eyes roll back in his head and his body collapse, according to the affidavit.

The boyfriend also allegedly admitted to punching the child in the stomach and spanking him hard enough to cause bruises.

The man's court appearance is Jan. 9.

No attorney was listed, and attempts to reach family for contact were unsuccessful.

---

E-mail: sisraelsen@desnews.com