A boy has returned home and is recovering after his father kidnapped him in May and set fire to a car with the boy still inside.
Bennett Dornellas, 3, suffered third-degree burns over 90 percent of his body but was still photographed smiling in the days leading up to his release on Monday.
Her father, Joshua Bennett Dornellas, 32, was arrested after leading officers on a chase that began in South Carolina and ended in Georgia with the car engulfed in flames.
It all began with a violent assault on Bennett and his mother at the family’s Anderson County home, deputies said, prompting Dornellas to kidnap the boy and drive him across state lines on I-85.
Georgia state police quickly intervened and Dornellas eventually set the truck he was driving on fire before jumping out of it at a speed of 55 mph. Bennett was left burning inside, but officers miraculously managed to save his life.
Four months later, Bennett is back home and his father is being held without bail.
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Bennett Dornellas, 3, suffered third-degree burns over 90 percent of his body after his father kidnapped him in May and set a car on fire with him still inside. He is pictured at a burn center in Augusta, Georgia, from which he was released Tuesday.
Her father, Joshua Bennett Dornellas, 32, is in custody after leading officers on a chase that ended with the car being set on fire in Georgia after starting in South Carolina.
“Today was an amazing day! I shed so many tears, tears of joy,” Bennett’s mother, Chelsea Oliver, said in a social media post celebrating Bennett’s release.
“Thank you all,” said the woman, who recently separated from the suspect and shares several children with him.
“We are forever grateful to all of you! We will miss all of our wonderful nurses and doctors, but we will be back often for check-ups and future surgeries.”
In a follow-up, Oliver wrote: ‘Bennett is fast asleep and so happy to be home!
“He laughed a lot at Uncle Jeremy and Ridge playing with Woody’s hat,” she added, referring to Bennet’s faithful Toy Story figure who was by his side throughout his stay in the ICU.
“I’m so happy that all my babies are under one roof and we can spend quality time together.”
The post radiated positivity, despite the severe scars and burns still visible on the boy’s face.
The photos show him reunited with Oliver outside the family home, while another shows him flashing a reassuring smile once inside.
The boy is seen here outside his home with his mother, Chelsea Oliver, on Monday, as he continues his road to recovery.
Pictured here is the family home in May after Bennett was abducted by his father following an alleged abuse incident involving the boy and his mother.
Bennet on better days. His family said he is happy to be home with his siblings and toys.
Oliver recorded similar scenes during her son’s four-month stay at the Augusta burn center where he recovered after his father allegedly kidnapped him and doused him in gasoline before setting him on fire.
First fleeing the home where Bennet lives with his mother, Dornellas grabbed the boy, drove him away in his pickup truck and threatened to kill him as officers began to approach, Georgia State Patrol officials said.
At that point, the soldiers attempted to carry out a lockdown maneuver to stop the truck from advancing, but were ultimately unsuccessful.
The Georgia agency said that was when the suspect, who has a history of violence that led to a breakup with his spouse, intentionally set fire to his car with the child still inside.
He jumped out the driver’s side window while traveling at 55 mph, leaving the car to crash into an embankment completely engulfed in flames near mile marker 166, troopers said.
Officers were able to quickly remove the boy from the vehicle, but not before he suffered severe burns over nearly his entire body.
Medical professionals took care of the rest, putting him on a ventilator and performing a series of surgeries to close up all of his skin.
They were ultimately successful, though even after his release last week, he will still have to undergo several more procedures during his upcoming visits to Augusta as he continues to recover.
His faithful Woody figure has been by his side every step of the way as he continues to show bravery on his road to recovery. Meanwhile, his father faces a long list of charges for his actions.
As for his father, he had a court appearance on September 9, where he was denied bail for the third time.
Dornellas remains in custody amid an investigation by the Georgia State Patrol, after the Anderson County Sheriff’s Office previously said Dornellas was arrested at the family home in Belton on April 21 for leaving Bennet and four other children, all under the age of 11, home alone.
One of those children, a toddler, was later found wandering the street, police said.
A few days later, police charged him with domestic violence after assaulting the boy’s mother, prompting her to file for a protective order against Dornellas.
That set the stage for the May 8 incident, which left Bennett with “third-degree burns over 90 percent of his tiny body,” the family said in an online fundraiser that has since raised more than $80,000.
Dornellas, who was driving a gold F-150, faces a long list of criminal charges, including criminal attempt to commit murder, kidnapping, aggravated assault, first-degree cruelty to children, first-degree arson, aggravated assault on a police officer and endangering a child while driving under the influence.
He also faces a number of traffic and smuggling offences, as well as more than 20 years in prison if convicted. A trial date has not been immediately set.
