Riviera Beach man sentenced to eight years in prison for toddler’s death

After pleading guilty and admitting responsibility for aggravated child abuse that resulted in the death of a toddler in West Palm Beach in 2018, the Riviera Beach man was sentenced to eight years in prison.

West Palm Beach police investigators alleged that on November 1, 2018, Octavius ​​Wiggins beat Jeremiah Malachi Bradshaw, his girlfriend’s 23-month-old son, with a belt, inflicting injuries that led to the child’s death just over three weeks later. This accusation was made at the time of Wiggins’ 2019 arrest in West Palm Beach.

The hearing was held January 30 before District Judge Caroline Shepherd at the Palm Beach County Courthouse in West Palm Beach. Wiggins, now 32, pleaded guilty during the hearing. The Palm Beach County State Attorney’s Office decided not to file a second charge of aggravated manslaughter in connection with the child’s death.
Jeremiah, who was a toddler at the time, reportedly received a slap from Wiggins after he fell on the road. Jeremiah’s mother, Stephanie Robinson, told investigators that she left the toddler in Wiggins’ care for about thirty minutes and found the boy in distress when she returned to check on him.

Robinson reported that Wiggins told her that as he chastised the youth with a belt, he “passed out” in the middle of a disciplinary act. Some time later, Robinson was taken into custody on charges of child neglect. According to police, Robinson neglected to provide a safe environment for her child. She has pleaded not guilty and the trial is still ongoing.

According to investigators, Robinson did not comply with a restraining order that prohibited Wiggins from any contact with a minor child. In June 2018, Jeremy broke his hand, prompting Robinson and the Florida Department of Children and Families to jointly file a restraining order petition.

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