Grandfather 'whipped, kicked and choked his young grandsons on Grand Canyon hikes from hell that brought them to brink of death'



An Indiana man has been accused of torturing his three grandsons during a series of 'hikes from hell' through the Grand Canyon.



Christopher Carlson, of Indianapolis, has been charged with child abuse after hiking his three grand-kids to the brink of death, because he thought they were overweight and needed 'toughening up,

He allegedly forced the boys to walk up to 20 miles a day in temperatures of up to 42C (108F) '.

Charged: Christopher A. Carlson, pictured after an arrest in 2006, thought the boys needed 'toughening up'

Torture: Carlson allegedly forced his three grandsons on 20 mile hikes through the Grand Canyon

If they tried to stop, Carlson would allegedly whip their shirtless backs with a wet t-shirt.



He would also hit, push, kick and even choke his three grandsons.

When one boy collapsed out of exhaustion -- Carlson pushed him to the ground and smashed his face into a rock.



He choked and lifted his youngest grandson by the throat, the report alleges.

The probable cause affidavit read: 'Carlson pushed him down onto a rock, kicked him and smacked his face down onto the rock.'



'As a result, his leg was cut, lips were bleeding and his nose was scratched … Carson told him to wipe his lips so the ranger wouldn't see the blood.'



As another form of punishment Carlson aggressively squeezed their private parts, Fox News reported.

Carlson is being held in the Coconino County Jail on six counts of causing death or serious bodily injury to children under his care.



He allegedly made the three boys, aged 8, 9 and 12, walk on ulcerated blisters and denied them food and water from sunrise to sunset.

They were forced them to run up the trail under the intense sun.



By the time of his arrest the boys had been vomiting, had cracked lips from the sun and could barely stand from exhaustion, reports allege.



A complaint filed by the U.S. Attorney's Office in Flagstaff, Arizona said rangers and passers-by noted the abuse against the boys.



Brink of death: The boys were allegedly given no food and water from sunrise to sunset

The court paperwork says the boys were on the trail when the sun rose. They were given only celery to eat for breakfast and no water. After hiking, the boys were not allowed to sleep, the report says.



The boys were forced to tell passers-by they were 'fine', but the oldest boy secretly asked one hiker to call 911.



Carlson was arrested on August 28 and appeared in court in Arizona on Thursday, showing no emotion, reporters said.



A park ranger testified that Carlson told him that the kids were overweight and needed to 'toughen up.', the Indy channel reported.

He said his goal was to prepare them for the cruel world and to strengthen them during recent hikes in tropical locales, including Honduras, Belize and Guatemala, the ranger said.

The ranger also testified that children’s familiarity with types of marijuana and different strains was quite abnormal.