A video has circulated on social media showing a man forcing his 6-year-old son to run on a treadmill to reduce "obesity," just before the child was reported dead due to mistreatment. In the video, the child continuously falls off the treadmill while the father keeps lifting him and making him run again.
According to the Daily Mail, the father, Christopher Gregor, 31, appeared in court on Tuesday charged with murder after the death of his son, Corey Michulow, in 2021 due to acute trauma after years of abuse. The video presented during the trial showed that the treadmill was set at a speed far beyond the child's capabilities, and he was repeatedly thrown off the machine, only to be seen crawling back to try running again.
During the circulated video, the child did not appear to be obese. After a few days of attending the gym, the boy's mother, who shared custody of Corey with his father, noticed injuries on her son and reported them to a child protection specialist.
At the doctor’s office, the child stated that his father forced him to run on the treadmill "because he was too fat," according to his father's perception. The next day, the father rushed the young boy to the hospital after he woke up from a nap stumbling, unable to talk, and suffering from nausea and shortness of breath. This prompted doctors to conduct a CT scan, revealing that Corey had suffered a seizure.
The medical team had to take necessary measures to save his life, but they were unsuccessful, and the child died. An initial autopsy revealed that Corey died from blunt force trauma, with bruising on the heart and liver, along with inflammation and sepsis.
After her son's death, the mother created a Facebook page titled "Justice for Corey" to raise awareness about his case. She wrote at that time: "I created this group to fight for justice for my son Corey Michulow." She added, "He was only 6 years old when his life was taken by someone who was supposed to care for and love him." If found guilty of the abuse that led to his son's death, the father is expected to face life in prison.
