Man Accused Of Hitting Ex-Girlfriend's Child With Spatula Arrested In Abandoned Shack
PITTSBURGH (KDKA) -- A West View man who is accused of abusing his ex-girlfriend's young daughter is now behind bars after being on the run from police for three months.
Police say they found him living in an abandoned train station in Shaler Township.
"I'm really not too surprised," said Paul Reed, the suspect's former neighbor. "I'm more shocked to hear it."
The suspect, Thomas Tallon, is accused of punching and beating the 7-year-old daughter of his former girlfriend.
Police say Tallon used his fists, a belt and a spatula to hit the girl, and on one occasion, allegedly videotaped the acts.
The three lived on Oakwood Avenue last summer when the alleged abuse reportedly took place.
"She was a good little girl. She was sweet," said Reed. "She use to come over, and I have a little girl, and she'd play with her, and you know, come inside and stuff. My heart goes out to that little girl for that."
Formal abuse charges against Tallon were filed in November of last year. A warrant was issued for his arrest, but Tallon decided to run from the law.
Authorities say he stayed in an abandoned train station in Shaler right off of Route 8, next to the McDonald's.
Shaler Police got tipped off that Tallon had been using the shell of a building as a home, using a propane heater to stay warm and bathing in the McDonald's bathroom.
"It just tells me he's at a low point in his life," Reed said.
Officers met with the Allegheny County Sheriff's Department at the site on Friday morning and they discovered Tallon and another person sleeping in the shack.
Tallon was arrested and taken to the Allegheny County Jail.
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