News

Utah couple accused of waterboarding 9-year-old girl

PROVO, Utah — Disturbing allegations of child abuse in Utah have been reported. A father and stepmother stand accused of, among other things, waterboarding a 9-year-old girl.

The girl's biological mother, Brittany Calabrese, now lives in Texas. Calabrese says child protection services notified her that her daughter was subjected to waterboarding as a form of punishment from her father and stepmother. "She`s 9, 9 years old. That is torture of a child," Calabrese said.

Provo police arrested the little girl`s father, Joseph Maeser Mitchell, 29, and the child`s stepmother, Ilaria Catherina Mitchell after detectives interviewed the 9-year-old girl.

"On three separate occasions, held her in the bathtub, put a towel over her face and poured water on her face and throughout the forensic interview with detectives she said it causes her pain and it made her unable to breathe," Sgt. Nisha King of the Provo Police told KSTU.

TRENDING NOW:

Investigators say that`s not the only thing the girl told detectives about what happened at home. "She also disclosed that her stepmother had struck her with a closed fist in the face, causing her to have a nosebleed," said King.

The case came to light after the girl was checked into the Utah Valley Hospital by her father earlier in November and the nurses saw something was wrong. "The emergency room staff observed some marks on her wrists which led them to alert the Division of Child and Family Services," said King.

The Division of Child and Family Services has taken custody of the girl, where police say she`s in a safe place until the court decides her future.

Her mother, still in shock after learning of the pain her daughter went through, says the emotions are unexplainable. "It was the hardest thing for me having to hear, being in Texas," said Calabrese. "No child needs to endure any of this."

Both suspects are charged with one count of child abuse. The father is also charged with unlawfully possessing a financial card after police allege he had a credit card in the name of one of his juvenile relatives.

 

CNN/KSTU

Most Read