A 32-year-old Osceola County man has been arrested and charged with murder in connection with the April 2023 death of a 10-year-old boy he severely abused a decade earlier.
On Wednesday, March 6, 2024, the Osceola County Sheriff’s Office, with assistance from the United States Marshals Office, arrested Todd Perez under a warrant for murder during the commission of a felony (aggravated child abuse).
According to OCSO, deputies responded to the 2200 block of Siesta Lane in Kissimmee on December 4, 2012, after receiving a report of child abuse. During this incident, a 3-month-old child suffered traumatic injuries that required surgery.
Upon the conclusion of OCSO’s investigation in 2012, Perez was charged with aggravated child abuse, and he later pleaded no contest to the charges. He was ultimately sentenced to state prison for the violations in early 2014.
The infant who was abused by Perez in 2012 went on to develop numerous medical problems that included cerebral palsy, muscle atrophy, and acute bronchopneumonia. In addition, he was nonverbal, a quadriplegic, cortically blind, had a seizures disorder, and he was unable to swallow, requiring a feeding tube, according to the sheriff’s office.
The boy passed away at the age of 10 on April 26, 2023.
Based on injuries that the boy sustained as a baby, which were inflicted by Perez, the 10th Judicial Circuit Medical Examiner’s Office ruled the 10-year-old child’s death a “homicide.”
After being placed under arrest on March 6, 2024, Perez was transported to Osceola County Jail, where he is currently being held without bond.