A man has been arrested by Kamphaeng Phet police on charges relating to the death of his two-year-old stepson whom he allegedly beat repeatedly.
He was caught after closed-circuit television (CCTV) cameras caught him assaulting the boy on Thursday inside an apartment building in Min Buri.
A one-minute and 35-second video of the assault was posted on Facebook and caused outrage across the social media. In the video, the stepfather kicks the boy, hits his head many times and shoves him near a fire escape inside a building.
The stepfather then carries the boy away after another man walks down the staircase and witnesses the incident. Police said the boy was taken to hospital.
His mother initially claimed her son fell from the stairs and did not report this to police. However, the boy's relatives did not believe the woman as there were many bruises and wounds on his body, adding that the stepfather was nowhere to be found after the incident.
According to the relatives, the stepfather was a drug addict and had frequently been seen beating the boy. The couple had lived together for about two months.
Police reviewed CCTV footage and the stepfather was arrested on Saturday night in Kamphaeng Phet, and was detained at Nimit Mai police station.
Doctors said the boy suffered from brain swelling and multiple injuries to his internal organs.