A Phoenix, Ariz. mom was arrested in a Walmart parking lot after police officers witnessed her physically assault her 7-year-old son. They later found out she administered the beating because she felt the boy hadn’t kept a good enough eye out for his grandma as she shoplifted inside the store. Rebecca Gonzales was charged with aggravated assault for “spanking,” “slapping” and “punching [her son] in the face,” according to an arrest report obtained by Yahoo Lifestyle.
The officers accused Gonzales of child abuse in the report, and explained that the mom was “picking him up from the Walmart where his grandma was using him as a lookout in a shoplift.”
The boy told police he was getting hit because he “didn’t watch out for his grandma good enough.” The arrest report shows that the boy was bleeding from the mouth after the assault, and the mother was sober when she hit him. A judge set a secured appearance bond of $2,500 for Gonzales. Yahoo Lifestyle has reached out to the Phoenix Police Department for an update on the case. If the mom does post bond, according to AZFamily.com, she is not allowed to have any contact with her son.
Gonzales is due back in court on April 26 for a status conference, and then on April 30 for a preliminary hearing.