A father of five has been arrested for fatally pummelling his three-year-old daughter as she screamed “Daddy I love you, I’m sorry”.
The shocking incident took place in the city of Fort Worth in the US state of Texas on Sunday.
The suspect, identified as Billy Joiner Jr, is accused of beating the girl, named Elena, in front of her mother Marissa and their four children.
The girl’s aunt Miranda Malone said: “He just started punching her… She had a heart attack. She went into cardiac arrest.”
The uncle of the victim, Matthew Malone, said: “Marissa was saying the whole time that Billy was beating Elena, he was fighting like she was another grown man.
“She was just saying ‘Daddy I love you, I’m sorry, I love you’ and he was just wailing on her.”
The victim’s family claimed that the suspect’s four other children, aged under five years, witnessed the incident.
Miranda said: “The older daughter remembers my sister just saying ‘stop crying and he’ll stop hitting you, stop crying and he’ll stop hitting you’.”
The aunt also said that she fails to understand why her sister, who is said to be pregnant with the couple’s sixth child, did nothing to stop the attack.
The family said little Elena was admitted to hospital with a broken arm, bruising around her ears, and two black eyes.
The three-year-old girl suffered a traumatic brain injury and doctors reportedly had to remove a section of her skull due to the swelling.
On 1st December, the victim’s life support machine was turned off and the young girl passed away within hours, according to Miranda.
The day before the attack, the victim was allegedly scalded with hot water. Her uncle Matthew claimed: “He had stuck her in the bathtub and burned the skin off her feet.”
According to court records, the suspect was charged with beating and throttling his partner last year.
At the time, Joiner Jr was ordered to take part in parenting classes.
In December last year, he was reportedly charged with threatening to shoot a potential witness.
The girl’s family said Joiner Jr was still wearing a GPS ankle bracelet when he was detained for killing his daughter. However, court records said a judge ruled that the bracelet could be removed two months ago.
Marissa’s cousin Ashley Lyons said: “Family members started reaching out to CPS (Texas Department of Family and Protective Services) before the incident even happened. So, CPS was aware there was something going on in the home.”
CPS confirmed that they have a history with the family and this week placed the victim’s four siblings into a foster home.
Relatives said Marissa is expecting the couple’s sixth child together.
The suspect has been charged with causing injury to a minor, a first-degree felony, and faces life behind bars if convicted.
