Florida divorce papers detail fears held by father of 4-year-old boy slain in Utah

Divorce papers detail fears of slain boy’s father

SALT LAKE CITY — The father of a 4-year-old child killed in Utah wrote in divorce papers that the boy’s mother was unstable and had abandoned him.

Divorce papers obtained by The Associated Press show that Joe G. Stacy feared Ethan Stacy’s mother would take their child to Utah and never return him.

Police dug up Ethan’s badly beaten body from a Utah canyon Tuesday, nearly two weeks after a Florida judge finalized a divorce that required the father to share custody.

The mother, Stephanie Sloop, is scheduled to appear in a Utah court Friday along with her new husband, Nathanael Sloop.

Police interview statements say he acknowledged beating the boy for days before his death, and that Stephanie Sloop did nothing to stop the abuse.

Charges in the case also are expected Friday.