Mechanic sent to jail for burning boy

A Carson City mechanic was sentenced to one year in jail Monday for burning a toddler with a cigarette and spanking the boy with a spatula in April.

Steven Jones, listed in county records as the owner of the now defunct H&S Motorcycles on Highway 50 East, appeared before Judge Todd Russell. He was given credit for 28 days served.

According to the arrest report, Jones, 20, allegedly arrived at a home on Sandstone Drive on April 15 where he told a female friend that her child needed discipline after he had cared for the boy the previous day.

The woman told police that while Jones and her son were in the kitchen, she heard her son scream, and when she went to see what was happening, Jones allegedly grabbed the boy and shoved him into the bathroom.

The woman said Jones then broke the bathroom door lock making it impossible to open, and fled the home.

The mother and friends spent 45 minutes freeing the child, the report states. When the mother saw her child, she noticed a burn on the back of his hand. When she asked him where it came from, he said, "Steven's cigarette," the report states.

The mother also found a large mark covering one of the child's buttocks that resembled the pattern of a plastic spatula in the kitchen.

Jones owned H&S Motorcycles on Highway 50 East. Carson City government received 13 calls about the business and seven written complaints about withholding property, refusing to return money for faulty items and failing to make repairs paid for, before it closed its doors in September.

The Carson City Sheriff's Department was called several times by individuals or groups who had complaints about the business. One report on Aug. 7 said eight "upset" customers were waiting outside the store.

• Contact reporter F.T. Norton at ftnorton@nevadaappeal.com or 881-1213.