April 21, 2020
By News Director Jared Atha
A Georgia man traveling through Beckham County was arrested recently and charged after being accused of abusing his girlfriend and her two children.
According to a probable cause affidavit, Sayre officers received a call from a concerned person in Georgia stating that she suspected that her son’s girlfriend and her children were being abused by, 34-year-old Ryan Jerome O’Neal of Lexington Georgia, while they were traveling through the area.
Officers were able to determine that the traveling party was parked at a nearby truck stop and were able to make contact with O’Neal, the female adult and her two young children, a 2-year-old female and a 10-month-old male.
During an interview, the woman told officers that O’Neal had allegedly hit her on multiple occasions and had struck both children. The officer noticed that both the woman, and the children had bruises on their faces and bodies.
The victims were evaluated at Great Plains Regional Medical Center in Elk City, where it was discovered that the boy had suffered a broken leg that had already began to heal, and was also suffering from multiple brain bleeds. The child was transported to an Oklahoma City hospital.
O’Neal was arrested, booked into the Beckham County Detention Center and charged with two counts of child abuse and domestic assault and battery in the presence of a minor. His first court appearance is scheduled for May 4.
