Young brothers tortured by parents found with bruises, broken bones in Oklahoma, feds say
An Oklahoma couple was sentenced to prison after officials say they beat and tortured their two young sons.
The 38-year-old woman was sentenced to 18 years in prison, and the 49-year-old man was sentenced to 30 years in prison, according to a March 5 news release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Oklahoma.
McClatchy News is not naming the man and woman to protect the identity of the children.
Between January and June 2023, the couple abused and tortured their two children within the Muscogee (Creek) Nation Reservation, according to prosecutors.
On June 12, 2023, deputies spoke with a person who said they went to the couple’s home and found two boys, born in 2017 and 2018, with bruises all over their bodies, a criminal complaint said.
One of the brothers was covered in blood and said his mom and dad beat him and his dad knocked his teeth out, the complaint said.
When police went to the home, they found the boys covered in bruises and one had a “large bloody area” on his head, authorities said.
The mother told police that the younger boy hurt the older boy, but when an officer asked the older child how he was feeling, he said his “mom and dad have been beating him up,” the court document said. The mother later told police she hit the boy with a belt 15-20 times, according to the complaint.
The brothers were taken to a hospital, and the younger boy had bruises on his face and body, scratches on his face and head, and was seen walking with a limp, officials said. The older boy had bruises on 90-95% of his body, according to the complaint.
Prosecutors said the boys’ father beat one of them with a pipe and he was “denied food, water, medical care, and sanitary living conditions.” The boy also “suffered head lacerations, internal bleeding, a broken arm, broken fingers, and traumatic skeletal muscle deterioration before rescuers were able to remove the children,” prosecutors said.
“(The father) maintains his innocence and will seek appellate review of the case from the Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals,” his attorney told McClatchy News in an email.
McClatchy News’ request for comment to the mother’s attorney was not immediately returned March 6.
On Nov. 17, 2023, the father was convicted of attempted murder, child abuse and child neglect. On Oct. 24, 2023, the mother pleaded guilty two counts of child abuse and one count of child neglect.
“The suffering these innocent children endured at the hands of two people who were supposed to love and care for them is horrific and unconscionable,” FBI Oklahoma City Special Agent in Charge Doug Goodwater said in the release.
The Muscogee (Creek) Nation Reservation is about a 110-mile drive east from Oklahoma City.
This story was originally published March 6, 2025 at 12:53 PM with the headline "Young brothers tortured by parents found with bruises, broken bones in Oklahoma, feds say."
