NEW HAVEN — A Connecticut man who authorities say punished two young children by holding their hands over a stove’s open flame is headed to prison.
New Haven Register reports that a Superior Court judge on Friday sentenced 31-year-old Michael Torres to 28 years behind bars. Torres was convicted in July of assault, unlawful restraint and risk of injury to a minor.
The victims testified that Torres became angry after one of them opened a window in a New Haven apartment in 2015.
A doctor says a 4-year-old girl suffered fifth-degree burns, but an 8-year-old girl avoided serious injury by struggling from Torres’ grasp.
The judge says the 4-year-old had to have four of her fingers amputated.
Torres’ lawyer had asked for a “minimal sentence.”
Torres declined to speak at the hearing.
