A.J. Freund Case: Father Called 911 to Report Boy Missing, Now He's Going to Prison for Killing Him
Matthew Apgar/AP/Shutterstock Andrew Freund
The father of A.J. Freund, the 5-year-old Illinois boy who was beaten, forced into a freezing shower and then put to bed wet as punishment before he was killed, has pleaded guilty to charges related to the child’s death. He was sentenced to 30 years in prison.
On Friday, nearly one and a half years since the little boy’s body was found wrapped in plastic and buried in a shallow grave, Andrew Freund, 61, of Crystal Lake, pleaded guilty to aggravated battery to a child, involuntary manslaughter, and concealment of a homicidal death in connection with the killing of his son, online court records show.
He was sentenced to 11 years for aggravated battery of a child, 14 years for involuntary manslaughter, and five years for concealment of homicidal death as part of a plea deal, NBC Chicago reports.
Crystal Lake Police Department (2) Joann Cunningham, at left, and son Andrew “A.J.” Freund
The sentences will run consecutively “for the protection of the public,” the judge said, KHQA reports.
Under the state’s truth in sentencing laws, he could end up serving just 18 years in prison, KHQA reports.
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In December 2019, the boy’s mother, JoAnn Cunningham, 37, pleaded guilty to one count of murder. In July, she was sentenced to 35 years in prison.
RELATED: Mother of Ill. Boy A.J. Freund, 5, Who Was Found Dead in Shallow Grave Pleads Guilty to His Murder
After A.J. was killed, his parents pleaded on TV for his safe return – knowing he was dead.
“I want us home together,” JoAnn Cunningham tearfully told ABC News at the time. “I just want my kids. … My kids are my life. They’re my kids.”
“A.J., please come home,”Andrew Freund begged as he talked to the media, the Lake and McHenry County Scanner reports. “We love you very much. You’re not in any trouble. We’re just worried to death. Please, please come home.”
RELATED: Ill. Mom Accused of Killing Son, 5, Tearfully Pleaded for Safe Return on TV: 'My Kids Are My Life'
The boy’s parents killed A.J. on April 15, 2019, and buried his body three days before Andrew Freund called 911 on April 18, 2019 to report him missing, Illinois prosecutors said in court, CBS Chicago reports.
Freund told local station ABC7 he was working with police but also looking for his son himself.
Police launched a massive search for the boy for about a week before Andrew Freund led them to Woodstock, about seven miles away from their home in Crystal Lake, where he’d buried the child.
RELATED: Parents Accused of Murdering Missing Ill. Boy, 5, Whose Body Was Found Wrapped in Plastic
When confronted with “forensic analysis of cell phone data" that investigators had obtained, both parents “provided information that ultimately led to the recovery” of A.J.’s body, Crystal Lake Police Chief James Black said at a press conference at the time.
After his arrest, Andrew Freund admitted that he hid his son’s lifeless body in a plastic bin for two days in the basement of their home.
Andrew Freund's attorney, Special Public Defender Henry Sugden tells PEOPLE that his client “wasn’t really part of the beatings” but “allowed things to continue that he shouldn't have,” so “they gave him the considerations for that" when he was sentenced.
His client, he says, “admitted his guilt. He led them to the body. And without the body, they would not have had a time of time, cause of death, or manner of death, or anything.
He added that in this case, “There are no winners. No winners."
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Earlier this month, two Illinois Department of Child and Family Services employees were fired and arrested and charged in connection with A.J.s death, according to CBS Chicago.
Caseworker Carlos Acosta, 54, and his supervisor, Andrew Polovin, 48, allegedly learned about a bruise on AJ's hip in the months before his death and failed to properly investigate, the Daily Herald reports.
Polovin pleaded not guilty. Acosta has not yet entered a plea.
Polovin’s attorney tells PEOPLE, “Andy has spent his entire educational and professional career preparing to and protecting children. For over 20 years, he has been a devoted public servant who treated his job as an advocate for neglected and abused kids as a vocation.
"He did nothing wrong in this case. To call his actions 'willful and wanton' and without concern for A.J. is false. He looks forward to his exoneration and the restoration of his reputation and good name."
RELATED: A.J. Freund Case: 2 Former Child Welfare Employees Involved Are Charged with Child Endangerment
Acosta's attorney did not immediately return PEOPLE’s calls for comment.
