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Parents tried to beat ‘demon’ out of 3-year-old son
Both could face life in prison if convicted
HOUSTON — A Houston man who allegedly thought demons had invaded his home was jailed Monday, charged with critically injuring his 3-year-old son.
Neighbors said the whole ordeal started with a statue.
Jacky Tran, 35, reportedly brought the statue into his southwest Harris County home, but then decided it had a demon in it.
“He said he got a statue and there was a demon inside or something, and then he took it to the Buddha, and the Buddha buried it in the cemetery,” neighbor Abdul Padat said.
That happened last Wednesday. Neighbors said by Friday, Tran had become a vegetarian and started throwing all of his belongings out of his second-story window, littering his yard with furniture and paintings.
But investigators believe that strange behavior took a decidedly darker turn on Saturday, when they say Tran beat his young son bloody.
[...]When they looked through a second-story window, investigators said they saw Tran swinging something – possibly the child — around a room.
They said they heard a child screaming, so they forced their way into the home.
Investigators said when they found the boy, he had suffered severe head injuries and was unable to speak.
Tran reportedly told investigators he was trying to beat a demon out of his son.
[...]Tran is facing felony child endangerment charges.
[...]If convicted, he could face from 5 to 99 years in prison.
[...]Tran’s wife, Phung, who was home when the alleged beating occurred, was charged with critically injuring her 3-year-old son Monday evening.
Buddhist community outraged over demon beating case
HOUSTON – Houston’s Vietnamese and Buddhist communities are outraged over what they claim is a distortion of their religious beliefs.
The outrage comes after Jacky Tran allegedly beat his 3-year-old-son. Neighbors say the beating was a Buddhist motivated attempt to force out demons.
“We don’t want to be looked upon as sharing the same kind of beliefs and actions as that man. Everybody condemns that action,” Vu Thanh Thuy of Radio Saigon Houston said.
The Vietnam Buddhist Center in Sugar Land also condemns Tran’s actions.
They wanted to make it clear that Buddhism does not teach anything about removing demons, especially at the painful expense of another human’s life.
[...]The communities want to send the message that Buddhism is about alleviating suffering, not causing it, especially when it comes to a helpless 3-year-old boy.
[...]
New details in ‘demon’ beating allegations
When investigators entered the home, they found the three-year-old with serious injuries to his face and head.
Authorities say he was with his mother in the bathtub. She reportedly said she was trying to wash the demons out of him.
Both the three-year-old and his six-year-old sister have been placed in CPS custody. The Trans both face injury to a child charges.
If released on bond, which is set at $100,000, Tran cannot have contact with her kids. The three-year-old still remains in the hospital. The six-year-old is in a foster home. Authorities are still investigating whether she suffered any abuse.
[...]
Prosecutors: Bamboo sticks used in ‘demon’ beating
Both parents of a 3-year-old southwest Harris County boy beat him with bamboo sticks and poked his feet with chopsticks in a violent attempt to remove demons from his body, a prosecutor said Tuesday in a court hearing. [...]
Both face up to life in prison if convicted.
Prosecutors say the parents, Buddhists and vegetarians, believed demons entered the boy through meat he ate.
Medics flew the boy to the hospital, where he was being treated for skull fractures. Officials said he is expected to survive.
[...]
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