Bible dad whipped children
A DEVOUT Christian was jailed yesterday for horsewhipping his three young children to “stop them going off the rails”.
The father, 52, admitted using his antique crop on the children, aged from seven to 12, “for their own good”, but denied it was cruelty.
However, a judge called him a “cruel and controlling bully” whose behaviour was “unspeakable”.
The father beat the children if they were late for a meal or even held a salt cellar incorrectly.
Cardiff Crown Court heard that one rang the police, and when they arrived two terrified children begged not to be left.
His youngest child said via video link: “If I wouldn’t get ready for bed, Dad hit me on the hand with the horsewhip quite hard. It made me feel sad.”
The father, an engineer from the Vale of Glamorgan, said: “I’m trying to be a good father, to bring them up knowing right and wrong.”
The defendant was jailed for nine months for cruelty and a further 18 months after being found guilty of two assault charges against his partner, the mother.
He cannot be named to protect the children’s identities.