Man Allegedly Sawed Off Leg as Daughter Watched

Shannon Cox of Arkansas is charged with endangering welfare of a minor
By Kate Seamons,  Newser Staff
Posted Sep 18, 2022 6:33 AM CDT
Man Allegedly Sawed Off Leg as Daughter Watched
   (Getty Images / SergeyKlopotov)

Authorities say a child was thrown into a state of shock after her father amputated his own leg in front of her. Per a probable cause affidavit cited by NBC News, Shannon Cox faces a felony charge of endangering the welfare of a minor in connection with the Aug. 2 incident, in which the Arkansas 48-year-old reportedly used a "chop saw" to remove part of his right leg in the presence of his 5-year-old. The unnamed girl confirmed to the Boone County Sheriff’s Office that she saw it happen, per the affidavit. A member of the sheriff's office discovered Cox naked and missing a portion of his leg in front of a home. KRON4 reports deputies followed a trail of blood to a chop saw and found the removed limb portion there.

Cox's 30-year-old wife told authorities she left home the night prior after fearing for her life; she said her husband had been acting strangely, but that she wasn't concerned abut her child's welfare. Per the affidavit, “[Wife] Sandy said he was telling her that he was Jesus Christ and that she needed to get right with the lord. Sandy said he then became violent toward her and said he was Satan. He told Sandy that he was going to twist her head off and continued to make verbal threats.” She was also charged with a felony count of endangering the welfare of a minor. (More amputation stories.)

Get the news faster.
Tap to install our app.
X
Install the Newser News app
in two easy steps:
1. Tap in your navigation bar.
2. Tap to Add to Home Screen.

X