A Central Florida man was arrested for child abuse, and the penalty was enhanced for being a hate crime, according to local law enforcement. Polk County Sheriff’s Office deputies arrested 33-year-old Andre Brown Jr., of Davenport, for child abuse, a life felony enhanced due to the abuse being a hate crime.
According to the affidavit, the investigation began after a 9-year-old girl in his care contacted her mother and advised that Brown was abusing her and the two other children in the home. She then texted her mom stating, “I’m scared, he’s whooping him so hard, I’m scared.”
During screenings with the children, they advised that Brown was mad at the 5-year-old boy “for being gay” and began slamming him on the ground multiple times. He then got upset with the two other children for an alleged past occurrence and began striking all three children with a belt…