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Texas authorities are looking for four suspects in connection with what they say is a horrific torture of a 7 year old boy during a home invasion, officials said.
The Fort Bend County Sheriff's Office received a phone call early Monday morning detailing a robbery at a Richard house involving three masked suspects, according to a press release released.
Upon entering, the suspects held the boy in the bathtub while demanding the owner's money, according to the authorities.
The suspects filled a bath with hot water and repeatedly "dunked" the boy in the water, took him out and asked him where the money was hidden, said to ABC News Caitilin Espinosa, Public Information Officer for Fort Bend County.
Fort Bend County Sheriff's Office
The video surveillance of the kitchen of the house captured the audio of the torture, said Espinosa.
"It's horrible to listen to," she said, adding that the audio indicates that the suspects were at home for about 40 minutes. The sheriff's office will not broadcast these images, she said.
The Fort Bend County Sheriff, Troy Nehls, said Tuesday at a press conference that even law enforcement officers were stunned by the brutality of the attack.
"It's horrible to think that we have three people trying to earn a little more money, and they're going to do it to a young man like that? A child? How dare you," he said. Nehls at the press conference.
Fort Bend County Sheriff's Office
In an image taken inside the house and released by the authorities, one of the suspects can be seen grabbing the boy.
Fort Bend County Sheriff's Office
In a second surveillance video released by the authorities, the suspects can be seen going up the driveway from the house.
Fort Bend County Sheriff's Office
The suspects came out with jewels, money, mobile phones and car keys, reported ABC Houston KTRK. Three of the suspects entered the house, and one suspect was the leaky driver, according to authorities.
The boy was taken to a local hospital where he was treated for water in his lungs, the authorities said. He has since been released, according to Espinosa.
Fort Bend County Sheriff's Office
The father was also injured when the suspects hit him, authorities said. Investigators believe that he may have been targeted because he owns a business, Espinosa said.
Nehls described the incident as "the worst kind of crime against a family," calling the suspects cowardly.
"Three crooks who make their way into a house in the middle of the night are terrible," he said in a statement. "To make matters worse, they landed a 7-year-old child."
A suspect was seen wearing a black hoodie with white lettering saying "Jordan" on the sleeves, and another suspect was seen wearing red sneakers meant to be Jordan basketball shoes, officials said.
Crime Stoppers offers a $ 25,000 reward for information leading to an arrest. Authorities ask anyone who recognizes them to contact them.
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