NORFOLK, Va. (WAVY) — The father of a 4-year-old who was beaten to death in a Norfolk home is wanted for felony homicide, police say.
The Norfolk Police Department tweeted out a “wanted” photo of 40-year-old Hank L. Smith on Wednesday. Smith is the father of 4-year-old Larkin Carter Carr. The boy died of blunt force trauma to the abdomen in a Sangamon Avenue home on Nov. 12, 2018.
Smith was charged with child abuse and neglect in connection to Larkin’s death earlier this year. He is described as being 5-feet-10-inches tall and weighting 190 pounds. His last known address is in the 800 block of Norview Avenue in Norfolk. Anyone with information about his whereabouts should call the Norfolk Crime Line at 1-888-LOCK-U-UP.
Smith was engaged to a woman named Catherine Seals at the time of Larkin’s death. Seals’ 15-year-old son, Robert Bolsinger-Hartshorn, is charged with second-degree murder in Larkin’s death. He is undergoing sanity and competency evaluations, which will be reviewed by a judge in January.
Larkin was left home alone with Robert on Nov. 9, 2018 while Seals and Smith went to pick up one of her other children for a visit. The teenager told police that while he was alone with the 4-year-old, he hit Larkin the stomach with a chair. Larkin threw up blood that afternoon, and wasn’t well for the rest of the weekend. He told Seals that his sides were sore, and he was lethargic, she told police.
Instead of taking Larkin to the hospital, Seals cleaned up his bloody vomit and put his bruised body in a bath.
On the day of Larkin’s death, Robert was left at home alone with the 4-year-old again. He later admitted to police that he got on top of Larkin and hit him in the stomach multiple times with his fists. Larkin became unresponsive, and by the time paramedics got to the house, he was not breathing. He was pronounced dead at the hospital, according to court documents.
Seals pleaded guilty a month ago to felony homicide and felony child abuse with serious injury in connection to Larkin’s death. The plea agreement caps her potential sentence at 21 years, 6 months. Her sentencing is scheduled for January 31.
