24-year-old man arrested for beating young girl

An Immokolee man is behind bars for beating a young girl. Parents nearby are shocked that anyone would abuse a child.

Manuel Hernandez-Jimenez, 24, was arrested for whipping a child with a cord.

The arrest report shows detectives observed lash marks and a small bump on the top of the child’s head and a large one on the back of her head. Hernandez-Jimenez’s landlord reported hearing Hernandez-Jimenez hitting the girl.

CCSO said, based on the evidence, the Hernandez-Jimenez maliciously punished the child for wetting her pants and may have caused serious injuries to her skull.

Hernandez-Jimenez told deputies he and the child came to the United States size months ago from Guatemala. He said the mother could not come with them because he did not have enough money to pay for the illegal travel.

“Over the top,” Robert Beiles said. “You know a kid is a kid. Things happen. You have to be the adult. Looks like he needs supervision as a child.”

Beiles said the man accused of beating the child crossed the line.

“Sometimes the kids need a little whack in the rear,” Beiles said. “A whack. Not a beating.”