US man who forced son to run on treadmill, causing his death, jailed for 25 years

A man in the US has been sentenced to 25 years in prison for forcing his six-year-old son to run on a treadmill, eventually leading to his death. Christopher Gregor of New Jersey had become notorious as the 'treadmill dad' after security camera footage emerged showing him continuously placing his son Corey Micciolo on the running machine, apparently because he thought he was "fat".

The incident happened at the Atlantic Heights Clubhouse in March 2021. Corey fell sick, was hospitalised, and eventually died on 2 April 2021.

On Friday (Aug2),Ocean County judge Guy P Ryan sentenced Gregor to 20 years in jail for aggravated manslaughter and five yearsfor endangering the welfare of a child for Corey's death. The 31-year-old managed to escape the murder charge. The sentences will run concurrently, said the judge.

The jury had seen the CCTV clips from the clubhouse gym, which became crucial evidence. The footage, which had gone viral, showed how Gregor placed his son repeatedly on the treadmill.

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Corey fell down as the machine was too fast. But the unflinching father only increased the treadmill's speed, as shown in the security footage.

Corey's mother Breanna Micciolo cried after hearing the verdict, while Gregory remained straight-faced.

While giving her victim impact statement, Micciolo called Gregor, her former partner,a monster. "Corey was and still is my life, my world and my everything. What this monster did was pathetic, and disgusting, and I wish him nothing but the worst," she told the court in tears.

But Gregor continued to maintain his innocence. Before he was sentenced, Gregor told the court: "I did nothing to cause Corey's passing.I did not hurt my son.''

Earlier, the jury had rejected the murder charge, while finding him guilty of manslaughter.

The case had dragged on for three years as Gregor was initially charged only with child endangerment. But the Ocean County Prosecutors Office latercharged him with murder in March 2022, changing it to manslaughter, and the case went to trial.

(With inputs from agencies)