Estimated read time: 1-2 minutes
This archived news story is available only for your personal, non-commercial use. Information in the story may be outdated or superseded by additional information. Reading or replaying the story in its archived form does not constitute a republication of the story.
LOGAN, Utah (AP) — A Logan father accused of chaining his 6-year-old son to a bed while the man was at work was in court Monday, where a judge set a date for an evidentiary hearing.
Authorities say the boy had access to snacks and water, and the heavy chain attached to his ankle was just long enough for him to reach the restroom.
Police said the boy appeared to be in relatively good physical health when he was found, and he was put in the custody of child welfare services.
The unsettling discovery came in a middle-class neighborhood in Logan, a city of about 49,000 people 80 miles north of Salt Lake City.
The judge set the hearing for July 29, the Herald Journal of Logan (http://bit.ly/1nX9WmE) reported.
The Associated Press is withholding the name of the 29-year-old defendant to avoid identifying the child. He is charged with four counts of child abuse and has not entered a plea.
On June 10, Logan police received an anonymous tip and said they found the boy home alone.
Investigators believe he had been tethered to the bed for 10 straight days when the father left for work then unchained when the suspect returned.
The man did general labor for $13 an hour, court records show.
The father was convicted of felony forgery and theft in 2009. He was arrested again in 2011 when he broke the terms of his probation, online court records show.
Copyright © The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
