Child Torture and Attempted Aggravated Murder Charges Filed

Today, Salt Lake County District Attorney Sim Gill announced three first-degree felony charges, including attempted aggravated murder and child torture, filed against both Tyrel Scott Belone and Amber Lee Leary.
 
At 7:13a on June 28, 2025, Sandy Police responded to a report of an assault of a three-year-old child, C.W. When police arrived, the child's mother, Leary, directed them to where her daughter was downstairs. C.W. did not appear conscious or alert, but she was breathing, and the responding officer felt a pulse. However, the child was not speaking or moving, and there was no movement in her eyes. Officers observed several bruises on C.W.'s face as well as bruises all over her body.
 
On June 28, 2025, at 430am. C.W. got out of bed and went to the bathroom in the corner; Belone and Leary both woke up to clean it up. At around 530am, before Leary left for work, Belone picked up C.W. and threw her on the mattress, where she ricocheted, and hit her head and face on the wall. Belone said he checked C.W., and her breathing was fine, and her heart rate was steady, but she wasn't really responding. Leary left for work, but Belone soon told her she needed to come home. Belone called his mother, who he says is a nurse practitioner; she asked to see C.W. on Facetime and saw her unresponsive. Belone's mother told him he had to take her to the hospital. Leary told police when Belone's mother asked to do Facetime, Belone refused and briefly left the room. Leary started Facetime when Belone left, long enough for Belone's mother to see C.W. Leary said that Belone wouldn't let her call 911 and said things like, "If you call, I'll go to jail, you don't have any money, you don't have any friends." Leary said, "What if she dies?" and Belone responded, "She'll be fine." Leary told Belone she needed to have a smoke, so she stepped outside and called 911.
 
As detectives asked Belone about some of the injuries on C.W., Belone admitted to spanking C.W. four to five times in one incident and that he used an open hand to strike C.W. high on the cheekbone, that he hit her once or twice on each side, and Leary was in the bedroom when that happened. Detectives asked about punching C.W., and Belone admitted he had hit her with a closed fist in the temple. Belone also said that Leary has never physically gotten between him and C.W.
 
Leary stated that on the previous Sunday, June 22, 2025, she was at work and received a text from Belone at 7:25 a.m. that said, "I am going to murder her." When she got home from work around 6:30-7:00 p.m., she found C.W. with her eyes bruised and swollen shut and a big bruise on the right side of her head. Belone told her that he hit C.W. with an open backhand. Leary reported that she stayed home with C.W. from Monday through Thursday that week, and she didn't take C.W. out because of all the bruises on her face.
 
Both defendants are each charged with one count of first-degree felony attempted aggravated murder, one count of first-degree felony aggravated child abuse, and one count of first-degree felony child torture.
 
"If you are a parent who is struggling with your children, please ask for help from friends or family or outside organizations that can help you. As parents, we are meant to protect and raise our children in a healthy environment where they can flourish," said Salt Lake County District Attorney Sim Gill. "We appreciate the thorough investigation done by Sandy Police Department that helped lead to these charges being filed. All persons accused of wrongdoing are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty in a court of law."