LAS VEGAS – A note given by a Las Vegas schoolgirl to her teacher saying that her mother was in captivity and she thought the girl’s brother had died led to the discovery of the boy’s body in the garage freezer and the arrest of the mother’s boyfriend on murder and kidnapping charges. authorities on Wednesday.

Brandon Lee Toseland, 35, was arrested Tuesday after police saw him leave home with his mother in a car in which officers also found handcuffs, Las Vegas Homicide Lt. Ray Spencer said.

A lawyer speaking on behalf of the woman and her family told the Associated Press that she had endured months of physical, sexual and emotional control over a man who told her he would kill her children if she ever left him.

More than 10 weeks after last seeing her son, she sent a message with her daughter to school.

“There was never a time when her daughter wasn’t with her so she wasn’t locked in a room, tied up or handcuffed,” lawyer Stephen Stubbs said of the mother. “There was never an opportunity to take my daughter and run away.”

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The AP did not name the mother or children to avoid identifying the victim of sexual assault. Stubbs said the mother did not want her name published.

Spencer said she said Tozland detectives sometimes used restraints to keep her in custody and that she had not seen her 4-year-old son since Dec. 11 when she said Tozland told her the boy was ill and “that’s it.” it was too late. “

“I remember that quote,” Spencer told the AP. “There are still many questions to which we have no answers.”

Toseland later told the mother that the boy had died, according to the Toseland arrest report, “and said she would not be allowed to see his body because he would lose his freedom.” The report notes that Toseland never called police or paramedics.

Stubbs said the mother knew Toseland as an acquaintance of her husband, the father of her children, before the man died in January 2021 of an unidentified respiratory illness. Stubbs said the girl is now 7 years old.

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After all three moved into Tozland’s home in March 2021, he “slowly and methodically” tightened control over them, Stubbs said: closing the windows; using video surveillance; pick up the mother’s mobile phone; severing ties with family; handling her social media.

“The mother was subjected to physical, sexual and emotional abuse,” Stubbs said. “Children were most often physically and emotionally abused and separated from their mothers.”

The woman worked until December as a phlebotomist, a medical technician who collected blood samples from patients before Stubbs said her job received a text message that she had resigned.

Although her mother was handcuffed while traveling in the car, she found a pen and a notebook with notes in the car and was able, when Tozland was not looking, to “write notes little by little and hide them,” Stubbs said in a statement. On Tuesday, her daughter was able to hand over to the teacher about nine small notes.

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Police said the notes said the woman was being held against her will, “did not know the whereabouts of her child and … believed the child may have died.”

A police statement said the woman told detectives she had been abused by Toseland and was not allowed to leave the house alone or enter the garage.

Spencer said detectives received a search warrant before finding the boy’s frozen body. Ownership documents show that Toseland owns a two-story, three-bedroom house with stucco.

School District Police Lt. Clark Brian Zink declined to specify the level of the boy’s sister’s class or to name the elementary school where he said the teacher handed the note to administrators who notified police.

On Wednesday, Tozland originally appeared in court on two charges of kidnapping before a Las Vegas judge who ordered him to remain in jail until appearing Thursday on charges of open murder. It was not immediately clear whether Toseland had hired a lawyer to represent his interests.

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A lawyer representing Tozland’s interests, when he did not declare no offense in 2019 in Las Vegas, did not respond to reports from the AP on Wednesday.

Spencer said police are still gathering evidence in the case. He said the boy’s body was intact, but he had visible wounds that led investigators to believe he had been physically abused. Spencer declined to describe the injuries.

Stubbs said the boy’s sister described severe bruising, and Spencer said the mother told police that Tozland “widely punished the boy.”

The cause of death will be established by the coroner of Clark County.

Spencer said he did not immediately know if Tozland was working.

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Associated Press writer Paul Davenport of Phoenix contributed to this report.

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This story has been corrected to show that the three moved into Tozland’s house in March 2021.

LAS VEGAS – A note given by a Las Vegas schoolgirl to her teacher saying that her mother was in captivity and she thought the girl’s brother had died led to the discovery of the boy’s body in the garage freezer and the arrest of the mother’s boyfriend on murder and kidnapping charges. authorities on Wednesday.

Brandon Lee Toseland, 35, was arrested Tuesday after police saw him leave home with his mother in a car in which officers also found handcuffs, Las Vegas Homicide Lt. Ray Spencer said.

A lawyer speaking on behalf of the woman and her family told the Associated Press that she had endured months of physical, sexual and emotional control over a man who told her he would kill her children if she ever left him.

More than 10 weeks after last seeing her son, she sent a message with her daughter to school.

“There was never a time when her daughter wasn’t with her so she wasn’t locked in a room, tied up or handcuffed,” lawyer Stephen Stubbs said of the mother. “There was never an opportunity to take my daughter and run away.”

Advertising

The AP did not name the mother or children to avoid identifying the victim of sexual assault. Stubbs said the mother did not want her name published.

Spencer said she said Tozland detectives sometimes used restraints to keep her in custody and that she had not seen her 4-year-old son since Dec. 11 when she said Tozland told her the boy was ill and “that’s it.” it was too late. “

“I remember that quote,” Spencer told the AP. “There are still many questions to which we have no answers.”

Toseland later told the mother that the boy had died, according to the Toseland arrest report, “and said she would not be allowed to see his body because he would lose his freedom.” The report notes that Toseland never called police or paramedics.

Stubbs said the mother knew Toseland as an acquaintance of her husband, the father of her children, before the man died in January 2021 of an unidentified respiratory illness. Stubbs said the girl is now 7 years old.

Advertising

After all three moved into Tozland’s home in March 2021, he “slowly and methodically” tightened control over them, Stubbs said: closing the windows; using video surveillance; pick up the mother’s mobile phone; severing ties with family; handling her social media.

“The mother was subjected to physical, sexual and emotional abuse,” Stubbs said. “Children were most often physically and emotionally abused and separated from their mothers.”

The woman worked until December as a phlebotomist, a medical technician who collected blood samples from patients before Stubbs said her job received a text message that she had resigned.

Although her mother was handcuffed while traveling in the car, she found a pen and a notebook with notes in the car and was able, when Tozland was not looking, to “write notes little by little and hide them,” Stubbs said in a statement. On Tuesday, her daughter was able to hand over to the teacher about nine small notes.

Advertising

Police said the notes said the woman was being held against her will, “did not know the whereabouts of her child and … believed the child may have died.”

A police statement said the woman told detectives she had been abused by Toseland and was not allowed to leave the house alone or enter the garage.

Spencer said detectives received a search warrant before finding the boy’s frozen body. Ownership documents show that Toseland owns a two-story, three-bedroom house with stucco.

School District Police Lt. Clark Brian Zink declined to specify the level of the boy’s sister’s class or to name the elementary school where he said the teacher handed the note to administrators who notified police.

On Wednesday, Tozland originally appeared in court on two charges of kidnapping before a Las Vegas judge who ordered him to remain in jail until appearing Thursday on charges of open murder. It was not immediately clear whether Toseland had hired a lawyer to represent his interests.

Advertising

A lawyer representing Tozland’s interests, when he did not declare no offense in 2019 in Las Vegas, did not respond to reports from the AP on Wednesday.

Spencer said police are still gathering evidence in the case. He said the boy’s body was intact, but he had visible wounds that led investigators to believe he had been physically abused. Spencer declined to describe the injuries.

Stubbs said the boy’s sister described severe bruising, and Spencer said the mother told police that Tozland “widely punished the boy.”

The cause of death will be established by the coroner of Clark County.

Spencer said he did not immediately know if Tozland was working.

____

Associated Press writer Paul Davenport of Phoenix contributed to this report.

___

This story has been corrected to show that the three moved into Tozland’s house in March 2021.