By Shereen Siewert

An 8-year-old boy discovered walking on a Shawano County highway escaped a home in which he was tied up and forced to sit in his own waste for two days, according to a criminal complaint filed Monday in Shawano County Circuit Court.

Nathan Pogrant, 36, of Eland, now faces felony charges of child abuse/intentionally causing harm; reckless child abuse with the probability of causing great harm; four counts of false imprisonment; and an additional charge of causing mental harm to a child in connection with the case. He is jailed on a $25,000 cash bond.

Court documents state that the boy, who was hungry, dirty, and wearing large shoes that did not fit him  was found Oct. 5 walking on Hwy. 45 and initially told police he had been dropped off there. But he later disclosed to investigators he had spent two nights locked in the basement, wearing a hooded “straight jacket” and tied to a chair with a cord around his body and bike locks on his legs. Investigators say the boy had bruises on his shoulder and face and what appeared to be a rope mark on his stomach.

The boy said he had only been fed a single peanut butter sandwich one day earlier, according to police, and said “Nathan” would play music and turn up the volume to drown out the sound of the boy’s crying.

The boy’s mother, who has not been charged with a crime, confirmed the boy’s story and said she didn’t know why she did not put a stop to the alleged abuse. The boy told police he escaped by loosening the hoodie and untying the cord around his stomach before wriggling out of the bicycle locks on his legs. While Pogrant and the boy’s mother were asleep, he crept away from the home and began walking.

Officers executed a search warrant Monday, the results of which are sealed at this time.

Court records show Pogrant, who previously lived in Weston, was out on a bond in two open Marathon County cases at the time the boy was found. In one of those cases, Pogrant is facing two sexual assault charges with a jury trial set to begin Nov. 1.

An unnamed petitioner also filed a domestic abuse restraining order against Pogrant in 2016, court records show.

An adjourned initial appearance is set for Nov. 11.