A 32-year-old Draper man is being held without bail in the Salt Lake County Jail after his four children told investigators he beat them with leather belts for years and threatened them to keep quiet, according to court documents reported by ABC4 Utah on Tuesday, July 21.
James Maurice Roberts faces a first-degree felony charge of child torture, a third-degree felony charge of reckless aggravated child abuse, and a third-degree felony charge of tampering with a witness. Those charges are based on the probable cause statement supporting his arrest; formal charges had not been filed by the Salt Lake County District Attorney's Office as of July 21. Roberts is presumed innocent unless proven guilty.
The Draper Police Department opened its investigation on Thursday, June 11, after receiving a referral from the Utah Division of Child and Family Services. A therapist had reported that Roberts had been physically abusing his children for years. Multiple DCFS cases had previously been opened against Roberts, according to court documents.
The person who disclosed the abuse told the therapist he finally felt safe to come forward because Roberts is separating from the children's mother.
What the children described
DCFS and Draper police arranged forensic interviews with the four children at the Children's Justice Center. Each child described being struck with a leather belt "all over their hands, arms, back, head, and feet," according to court documents. One child said the beatings left scars on their back.
One victim described an incident in which Roberts broke the child's thumb during a beating. The children's mother demanded Roberts take the child to the hospital. At the hospital, Roberts allegedly threatened to break another finger if the child did not tell the doctor the injury came from falling off a bike, court documents state.
Another child told investigators that before the Children's Justice Center interview, Roberts coached the children to tell police a sibling's thumb was broken in a bike fall. That allegation forms the basis of the witness tampering charge.
Punishment continued after DCFS case opened
The children told investigators that after the DCFS case was opened, Roberts stopped using the belt but began forcing them to stand in a corner on one foot for hours. Two children said Roberts would throw a shoe at them if they put their foot down. One child recalled Roberts forcing a sibling to stand in the corner for three days without eating.
The children's mother also told Draper police that Roberts had physically abused the children for years with a leather belt.
Arrest and detention
Draper police detained Roberts, but he requested medical attention for a prior condition. Officers questioned him at a local hospital, where he denied all allegations. He was then arrested and booked into the Salt Lake County Jail.
Roberts is being held without bail. Court documents cite concerns he would retaliate against the victims and relatives who reported the abuse. He is also being investigated in a separate case involving the children's mother; court documents did not detail the nature of that investigation.
Under Utah's child torture statute, enacted during the 2025 legislative session, child torture is a standalone first-degree felony carrying a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years to life in prison.
No next court date has been publicly announced.
Residents who suspect child abuse or neglect can contact the DCFS 24-hour hotline at 855-323-3237 or visit dcfs.utah.gov.
