Denton police are releasing disturbing new details about the death of Phoenix Ho, a 7-year-old boy who died Friday after weeks of abuse.
"We do see a lot of crime every day," says Deputy Chief Frank Padgett, getting emotional during a press conference today. "But this is a child ... he couldn't defend himself against adults."
Police say Sabrina Ho, the boy’s mother, called police to their apartment in the 1600 block of East McKinney St. around 7:30 p.m. Friday. Police later learned that this was about five hours after Phoenix lost consciousness. According to the affidavit, Ho told officers she waited because she was trying to nurse the boy back to health.
Police say Phoenix was covered with extensive injuries, including severe bruising to his face, neck, armpits and groin. He also had puncture wounds and burns.
"The mother gave ... stories that conflicted with the injuries," Padgett says. According to the affidavit, Ho initially told police that she was in her bedroom when her boyfriend, 52-year-old Todd Shaw, called her out to say something was wrong with Phoenix. Ho said the 7-year-old was laying on the ground with his eyes rolled back into his head. She told officers she thought Shaw had hurt the child because he'd done it before.
According to the affidavit, Shaw told police that Phoenix was acting up and he "went too far."
Shaw was arrested that night and charged with injury to a child.
Police say Ho later told them that Shaw had been abusing Phoenix for at least a week, although officers say they suspect it was much longer than that. She says Shaw attacked Phoenix in early March, causing a significant injury that caused the boy great pain. Ho confessed to keeping Phoenix home from school and avoiding taking him to the doctor to hide the signs of abuse. She told police she was afraid of getting in trouble.
According to the affidavit, Ho had many opportunities to leave the situation and to get help for her son, but she did not. Yesterday, Ho was arrested and charged with injury to a child. Both suspects could be hit with additional charges.
Police say this is a horrific, disturbing case. And it could have been avoided.
"April is Child Abuse Awareness Month," Padgett says. "It's a complete tragedy that we lost a child on day one."
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