DELAND, Fla. – Authorities are searching for a man who they said beat a 3-year-old girl and put her in an oven.
Terry May, 45, of DeLand, is wanted on a child abuse charge, which carries a $50,000 bond.
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Volusia County sheriff's detectives said a deputy met with the victim and an investigator with the Florida Department of Children and Families on Thursday.
Detectives said the child said May, whose relation to the girl has not been released, frequently beat her with a belt.
The deputy observed numerous injuries throughout the child's body, including an extensive abrasion on her ear, several contusions and swelling on the top of her head and forehead, a 6-inch scar on her back, and abrasions and lacerations on her feet, hands and leg.
Authorities said the ear abrasion appeared to be consistent with a burn injury. After a medical evaluation, the victim told the DCF investigator that May had put her in an oven, authorities said.
Volusia County Sheriff Mike Chitwood designated May as the "SCUMBAG of the Week" and is urging anyone with information about his whereabouts to call the sheriff's office at 386-248-1777. Anonymous tips can be made by calling Crime Stoppers at 888-277-TIPS.