Estimated read time: 2-3 minutes
- Nathan Jack Speaker, 42, from Lehi, was charged Monday with two felonies.
- He is accused of assaulting a child at a church volleyball event.
- Investigators say Speaker, previously convicted of child abuse, attempted to evade police before his arrest.
LEHI — Criminal charges were filed Monday against a Lehi man accused of assaulting a child during a church volleyball tournament.
Nathan Jack Speaker, 42, is charged in 4th District Court with aggravated child abuse, a second-degree felony, and witness tampering, a third-degree felony. His arrest on March 11 came just three months after the man was sentenced for assaulting another child.
On March 8, "a church volleyball tournament was concluding at the church building located at 481 E. 300 North in Lehi," and Speaker was one of the last people leaving the gym, according to police.
As several children were "knocking the volleyball around," one child "stepped in front of Nathan and hit the ball away from him. This caused Nathan to become upset and grab the juvenile victim by the throat. Nathan lifted the juvenile victim completely off the ground and the victim stated he could not breathe during this," a police booking affidavit states.
Speaker then threw the boy "across the room" where he collided with another child, the affidavit alleges.
The boy began to cry and "yell at Nathan, stating he choked him." At that point, another adult "had to physically step between Nathan and the juvenile victim as Nathan began to reapproach the (boy). The (boy) yelled for Nathan to stay away from him," the affidavit says.
Later that night, Speaker wrote a letter to the boy "apologizing and stated that he knows that he has had anger issues," and sent a text message to the boy's mother asking her not to report the incident to the police, according to charging documents.
Speaker was convicted last fall of child abuse, a class A misdemeanor, after grabbing a 14-year-old girl by the throat, according to court records. He was sentenced in December to two years of probation and given credit for the six days he served in jail following his arrest.
In his latest arrest report, Lehi police noted that "as this case progressed, Nathan was advised by phone that he would be taken into custody on these charges. Nathan actively evaded apprehension by leaving his residence and staying at an unknown location. It took almost four days to locate Nathan and take him into custody. Family members knew where Nathan was staying but would not tell law enforcement."
