OSCEOLA COUNTY, Fla. – A man arrested Wednesday in Osceola County is accused of murder in the April 2023 death of a 10-year-old boy whom he was convicted of abusing in 2012.
Members of the sheriff’s offices’ Homicide Unit and the U.S. Marshals Office arrested Todd Perez, 32, while executing a warrant alleging murder during the commission of a felony, the felony being that of aggravated child abuse, according to a news release.
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The sheriff’s office called back to its response Dec. 4, 2012, along Siesta Lane in Kissimmee, where it was eventually determined that Perez abused a 3-month-old child to the point that the boy required surgery for his injuries. Perez pleaded no contest to a charge of child abuse and was sentenced to prison in February 2014, court records show.
According to the sheriff’s office, the child developed numerous medical problems as he grew older, issues such as cerebral palsy and muscle atrophy, being nonverbal, cortically blind and unable to swallow, requiring a feeding tube, developing a seizure disorder, acute bronchopneumonia and even being rendered quadriplegic. The child died April 26, 2023, at the age of 10, investigators said.
The 10th Judicial Circuit Medical Examiner’s Office ruled the child’s death a homicide, the sheriff’s office said, leading to the issuance and execution of the warrant for murder.
Perez is currently being held at the Osceola County Jail.
News 6 has requested more information from the investigation into the 2012 child abuse case.
This is a developing story. Check back with News 6 for updates.
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