Orange County, FL - A then deputy of the Sheriff was arrested on Sunday after his alleged performance of exorcism on a child. He was also telling the other kid that there was a demon in his home and to shoot anyone who enters.
Thirty-seven-year-old Christopher Dougherty was arrested due to allegations of child abuse on the same day that he was fired from the Office of the Sheriff in Orange County because of an unrelated reason based on the agency.
Dougherty had served the Sheriff's office since 2006 until the incident.
On Thursday, the deputies responded to a 911 call regarding a residential alarm. They determined that there was indeed evidence of child abuse at the apartment occupied by the Sheriff's former deputy.
According to a Fox News report, the former deputy was in possession of a handgun, along with a girl who was wearing body armor together with a Kevlar helmet and was lying on the ground in a shooting stance while holding a rifle.
Aside from the girl, a boy was also present inside the home and was armed with a taser.
During the initial investigation, the children shared with the investigators that Dougherty performed an exorcism on the boy. He told the girl that there was a presence of demons in the home. He directed her to shoot whoever will enter the area.
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Based on the information given by the Orange County Sheriff's Office, Dougherty was detained. After that, he was taken to a hospital where he was held due to the Baker Act observed in Florida. The law enables those determined likely inflected harm to themselves or others that need to receive immediate or emergency mental health services, Daily Mail reported.
After his release from the hospital on Sunday, Dougherty was arrested. The Orange County Sheriff's Office also terminated Dougherty after an unsatisfactory performance, which was claimed about a separate matter. However, the agency limited the information regarding the termination and mentioned that they would not provide any other details.
Orange County Sheriff in Florida, John Mina, shared that while this deputy was terminated for his continuous unsatisfactory performance and the criminal allegations that he now faces are very serious.
Mina also added that the highest standards of conduct should be observed as law enforcement officers, whether on duty or not.
Also, he added that he was also concerned concerning the mental health of the deputy.
As the investigation continues regarding the whole reason behind the incident, the relationship between the former Sheriff's deputy officer and the two kids remained undetermined by authorities.
The 37-year-old Dougherty started in 2006 at the agency after being hired in January of that year. After that was designated and suit up his uniform for the patrol division, Crime Online reported.
As of the moment, the two kids are also recovering from the traumatic incident they had experienced in the hands of the former Sheriff's deputy officer.
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