A serial dater mother brought in her abusive airman boyfriend after just two months, then joined in as he tortured her seven-year-old son nearly to death — and defended him to investigators, prosecutors alleged.
Jared Reeves, 32, and Marie Collins, 29, were arrested on suspicion of child abuse, assault and unlawful imprisonment, Airway Heights police said.
Collins told police that she and Reeves have been dating since April and that she and her son — who a doctor claimed was also traumatized during her previous relationships — moved in with Reeves in June, according to court documents.
Child Protective Services became involved after the child’s counselor at Sunset Elementary School alerted authorities when the child returned from winter break with unexplained injuries to his face and a significant amount of weight loss.
The counselor reported that the child ate food and drank milk from the trash at school, police said.
Marie Collins, 29, (pictured) brought in her allegedly violent airman boyfriend after just two months, then joined in as he tortured her seven-year-old son almost to death
Police said Jared Reeves, 32, (pictured) told them he hit the little boy with a ‘sex paddle’ and leash
Reeves and Collins appeared in Spokane County Superior Court on Thursday and are scheduled to be arraigned on March 19.
The boy told a CPS worker that Reeves had tried to kill him and that he would strangle him to the point where he could no longer breathe, according to court documents.
A child abuse investigation was launched against the couple in January after the CPS officer took the boy to Providence Sacred Heart Children’s Hospital because of bruises all over his body and extreme weight loss.
The boy has been ‘severely physically abused’ and could have been the victim of ‘possible torture’, a doctor wrote after examining the child.
“He is in immediate danger if he returns to his current living situation. He cannot sustain further injury without significant damage,” the doctor wrote.
‘He needs normal caloric intake for an extended period of time to ensure he develops as normally as possible.’
The seven-year-old had experienced childhood trauma and repeated violent trauma over the course of his life, the doctor said.
Child Protective Services became involved after the child’s counselor at Sunset Elementary School (pictured) alerted authorities when the child returned from winter break with unexplained injuries to his face and a significant amount of weight loss
The pair are suspected of child abuse, assault and unlawful imprisonment
The boy’s “mental stability and cognitive skills” are major concerns, the doctor wrote.
Both Reeves and Collins admitted to hitting the child, police said.
Collins told police she spanked her son, hit him with a metal spoon and forgot to feed her son for two weeks.
Collins also told investigators that she and Reeves forced the boy to undress and sleep in the bathtub without blankets or pillows for three weekends from December to January as punishment for the bedwetting.
The mother admitted to police that she had filmed incidents of physical abuse by herself and Reeves on her phone.
Authorities also said Reeves hit the little boy with a “sex paddle” and belt, causing bruises on the boy’s genitals and buttocks.
He also admitted to choking the boy and picking him up by the neck to the point where his feet left the ground, according to documents.
Collins or Reeves would force the child to hold his hands above his head or in front of him for one to four hours at a time.
If he dropped his arms, he would have to start over or be beaten with a belt, metal spoon, hands, or hairbrush.
The boy could be heard crying and screaming, “My back hurts,” through an audio file on Reeves’ phone, according to court documents.
Reeves and Collins appeared in Spokane County Superior Court on Thursday and are scheduled to be arraigned on March 19.
The investigation is still ongoing.