Mom who punched 10-year-old son and dislocated his jaw after he refused to stop playing 'Fortnite' arrested
A Florida woman, who allegedly struck her son because he refused to stop playing video games and taking a shower, has now been arrested.
Officers from the South Daytona Police Department detained Ann Maria Perugia, 35, on Wednesday after her 10-year-old son told police she hit him with a "closed fist" in the bathroom, according to an arrest report.
The report, which was based on the child's version of events, stated that the mother became enraged after he failed to turn off his 'Fortnite' game despite being asked to multiple times, reports WFTV.
The son had not moved from his position even 10 minutes after Perugia's request to switch off the console and take a shower. According to officials, she punched him when he started to walk towards the restroom to take a shower.
"He got up and started towards the bathroom and that is when his mother got irate and charged into the bathroom," the South Daytona police report said. "When the two got into the bathroom [he] stated that she punched him with a closed fist in the jaw which dislocated his jaw and caused great pain."
"The child also had scratches around his body that were caused by the mother," it added. "This malicious act also caused her son unjustifiable pain and injury. This act has no valid reason to subject the child to that kind of punishment for failing to listen to his mother."
The child then called his father, who picked him up from the Northern Road home and later told officials he wanted to press charges against his wife for abuse. Furthermore, he noted that Perugia's version of events did not mention the blow his son sustained.
According to the mother, per the police report, the boy had "stomped his feet into the bathroom so she followed him and asked what his attitude was for."
"I hate you and you don't do anything for me!" the son responded, before packing a bag and heading outside.
According to the Miami Herald, Perugia said she grabbed the boy's arm to bring him inside the home after he tried to leave. She added that her son threw rocks at her car in protest.
The son was taken to an aunt as the father does not have complete custodial rights over him, local media reported.
Perugia was later held on a child abuse charge, per records published by the Volusia County Clerk. The records state the infliction of physical/mental injury, which is a third-degree felony, against the mother.
She posted a $5,000 bail and was released shortly after 4.30 pm on Thursday.