Christopher Gregor NJ dad sentenced to 25 years jail in the manslaughter death of 6 year old son, Corey Micciolo, following unrelenting treadmill workout as the father continued to maintain he didn’t hurt the boy.
A New Jersey dad who was captured on surveillance video forcing his 6-year-old son to do a grueling treadmill workout — leading to the his death days later – claimed he didn’t kill the boy as he was sentenced Friday to 25 years in prison.
Christopher Gregor, 31, was handed the sentence following the death of Corey Micciolo, who was forced to run on a treadmill at high speeds as punishment on March 20, 2021.
Less than two weeks later, Corey died on April 2.
‘I didn’t hurt my son. I loved him and I still do!’
The August 2nd sentencing followed the father previously being found guilty of endangering the welfare of a child and aggravated manslaughter in May.
Addressing the court, the father insisted he had never hurt his son.
‘I want to assure you that on April 2, I did nothing to cause Corey’s passing,’ the weeping father stated. ‘I didn’t hurt my son. I loved him and I still do. I regret not bringing him to the hospital sooner. I didn’t know how sick he was. I didn’t know. I just thought he was tired.’
During trial proceedings, the court was shown ‘distressing’ video which showed the dad increasing the speed on the treadmill at the Atlantic Heights Clubhouse fitness center, causing Corey to fly off and fall six times.
Each time the boy fell off, Gregor insisted he get back on the treadmill and continue. At one point in the footage, Gregor seems to be biting his son’s head.
The intense exercise regime came as a result of Gregor believing the 6 year old was too fat according to prosecutors.
On April 2, Corey woke up from a nap nauseated, stumbling around and slurring his words.
Bitter child custody between boy’s father and mother
Gregor was captured in seen in surveillance footage that day carrying the boy’s limp and battered body into the Southern Ocean Medical Center in Hackensack shortly before he died.
The child ‘was not showing any signs that he was verbal,’ as his head tilted backwards in the examination room, according to testimony from registered nurse William Doyle, who was on duty at the time.
The injuries were so severe that Corey suffered a seizure during a CT scan, forcing medical staff to take emergency measures.
Despite the staffers best efforts, and the child was pronounced dead shortly before 5 p.m.
A subsequent autopsy showed the boy had suffered blunt force trauma to his chest and abdomen, as well as lacerations to his liver and heart.
Corey’s mother, Breanna Micciolo testified at his trial that she filed for emergency custody on March 31, 2021, after seeing her son’s bruises and learning about the treadmill incident. She told the jury that she was ‘in fear for Corey’s life.’
Micciolo told the jury she took Corey in for multiple medical tests after she grew alarmed about the bruising, but on April 1, 2021, a doctor who treated her son said he did not find signs of infection or respiratory distress.
Yet one day later, Corey died with the father subsequently charged with first degree murder and child endangerment.
Gregor avoided a murder rap when a jury in May found him guilty of endangering the welfare of a child and aggravated manslaughter. He had faced 30 years to life on murder charges.
Leading up to Gregor’s sentencing, Micciolo had petitioned Judge Guy Ryan to hand down the harshest possible punishment. Legal observers had stated it would be unlikely Gregor, who had no prior criminal history would be meted out a hypothetical 40 years.
Prior to being sentenced, Gregor apologized to Micciolo, stating he regretted not bringing Corey to the hospital sooner.
The apology was too little, too late.
‘He has no remorse for any of the actions he committed. His own remorse is because he got caught and convicted,’ the child’s mom, Breanna Micciolo, told the court.
‘Everything he had done to Corey was done out of spite to me. Another reason is he is sick in the head and used Corey as his punching bag. He never had an ounce of love for Corey, he was just an inconvenience to his life,’ she said.
‘I cannot even begin to imagine what my son went through behind closed doors with this man,’ the mom added.
Ryan sentenced Gregor to 20 years for aggravated manslaughter and five years for child endangerment.
Gregor’s legal team has claimed the child died as a result of an infection, though a medical expert found he died of blunt force trauma, Ocean County prosecutors announced.
