Police Arrest Lubbock Man for Beating Toddler

A Lubbock man is behind bars this week, accused of hurting a young boy under mysterious circumstances.

According to an investigation by the Lubbock Police Department, 23-year-old Timmy Ortiz (pictured above), a potential family member, was asked to pick up a 2-year-old boy on January 8th, 2021 and take him to a residence in Olton, Texas, located north of Lubbock and west of Plainview.

Along the way, however, Ortiz's vehicle suffered a blowout and both he and the boy had to be picked up by another family member. The boy was later found to have bruises on multiple parts of his body, a busted lip and a fractured leg bone.

The toddler was initially taken to a hospital in Plainview, but needed to be transferred to a Lubbock hospital. His current condition is unknown.

Ortiz denies having caused the injuries, but police say there are some problems with his story. Other family members have also said that the 2-year-old was fine before Ortiz had contact with him, but was suddenly injured afterwards.

Ortiz is being held in the Lubbock County Detention Center on a $150,000 bond, charged with aggravated assault.

This is just one of a few similar stories in recent months.

In February, 27-year-old Santiago Espinal-Orduna was arrested and charged for causing serious bodily injury to his own 7-week-old child.

According to a police report, the assault occurred on September 14th, 2020. The child reportedly had a broken humerus, other various fractures, and hemorrhaging of blood vessels in both eyes, which detectives believed to be signs of strangulation.