Osceola County man charged with murder after child dies from abuse 10 years later

OSCEOLA COUNTY, Fla. — A Central Florida man who was sent to prison for child abuse in 2012 was arrested again Wednesday after the child died more than 10 years later.

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Osceola County deputies responded to a home on Siesta Lane in Kissimmee on December 4, 2012 for an investigation into alleged child abuse after a three-month-old baby was hospitalized with traumatic injuries that ultimately required surgery.

The 2012 investigation led to the arrest of now 32-year-old Todd Perez on a charge of aggravated child abuse.

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According to court records, Perez was convicted and served out a sentence of just under two years in state prison.

The victim survived the injuries, but would go on to develop a number of medical issues, including cerebral palsy, muscle atrophy, an inability to speak or swallow -- requiring a feeding tube -- and seizures.

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According to the Osceola County Sheriff’s Office, the child died on April 26, 2023 at the age of 10 years old.

A Medical Examiner subsequently ruled the child’s death a “homicide” as a result of the injuries inflicted by Perez 10 years earlier when the victim was a baby.

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Investigators from the Sheriff’s Office Homicide Unit arrested Perez again on Wednesday with help from the U.S. Marshal’s Service.

Perez was booked into the Osceola County Jail on a warrant charging him with murder during the commission of a felony. He’s being held on no bond.

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