Fla. Couple Accused of Brutally Beating Boy, 12, Then Leaving Him in Laundry Room to Die

In a recorded phone call obtained by police, Jason Godleski told a family member, "We hit him too hard in the face and the back of the head"

Noah Godleski. Photo: Palm Bay Police

A Florida couple is accused of beating a 12-year-old boy and locking him in a laundry room, where he was left to die.

Jason Godleski, 33, is behind bars in Brevard County Jail facing charges of manslaughter of a child and failure to report a death, according to jail records.

Godleski was arrested on Oct. 26, four days after he walked into the Palm Bay Police Department and reported his son's death. According to police Chief Nelson Moya, Godleski went to police to report that his son, Noah, had died in his sleep.

However, when officers arrived at Godleski's home, they found Noah dead in the residence's laundry room. Moya said at a press conference on Thursday that the boy's body showed "obvious forms of trauma, evidence of trauma and more disturbingly he had been there for some time."

Godleski invoked his right to remain silent and refused to cooperate with police, Moya said. When investigators learned Godleski had three other young children with girlfriend Samarial Dubose, 33, they immediately went to work locating them.

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Without Godleski's help, authorities discovered that Godleski had driven Dubose and their children to Connecticut after Noah's death. Immediately, Child Protective Services removed the children from the couple's care. The children, ages 2 to 9, are now in the care of family. (Noah's biological mother has been out of the picture for years.)

"Upon speaking to the female, we also began to discover inconsistencies and irregularities with her statement," Moya said. "Our detectives, who were now sent to Connecticut, embarked on a series of interviews not only with her but with the children as well. We made some disturbing findings that we're still trying to confirm."

Moya revealed that there was a "likelihood" in 2013 and 2018 that Dubose was arrested for child abuse of Noah.

"In March 2020, there's a confirmed allegation through our department and Children and Family Services of a case involving an allegation brought forth by a teacher at one of our local schools that Noah was a victim of child abuse at the hands of both the suspect and his girlfriend," Moya said, adding that the department was not contacted and the case was closed out as "unfounded."

In a recorded phone call obtained by investigators, Godleski told a family member that "we hit him too hard in the face and the back of the head and left him dead," Moya said.

The investigation into Noah's death remains ongoing.

On Friday, Dubose was arrested in Connecticut, WVIT reports. Moya said Thursday Dubose faces the same charges as Godleski and is expected to be extradited back to Florida.

Attorney information for the couple was not available Friday.

If you suspect child abuse, call the Childhelp National Child Abuse Hotline at 1-800-4-A-Child or 1-800-422-4453, or go to www.childhelp.org. All calls are toll-free and confidential. The hotline is available 24/7 in more than 170 languages.